


i see myself (in you)

by parkrstark



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Body Swap, Bullying, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Light Angst, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark is a dad and Peter is his precious son
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-19
Updated: 2018-08-19
Packaged: 2019-03-21 07:12:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 28,774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13735815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/parkrstark/pseuds/parkrstark
Summary: “Hey, c’mon, before long we’ll be back to normal and we’ll look back at this and laugh.”Peter just looked up at him with a slight glare as he scratched at his chin again. The itch of the facial hair was driving him crazy and Tony found it highly amusing. “You’re in the body of a 15-year-old boy. Why are you smiling?”“You’re in the body of Tony Stark. Whyaren’tyou smiling?” Tony asked with a smirk.Or, the one where Tony and Peter swap bodies.





	1. thursday

**Author's Note:**

> i've been studying for finals for years so i took a little break to post this. It was supposed to be one chapter, but it got much longer than planned so I'm going to split it up into 3 chapters.

Tony watched as the kid, clad in his red and blue spandex suit, crawled into his penthouse window. Once he was inside safely, he pulled his mask off with his free hand. The other one continued to hold a glowing red stone.

 

Peter had called him during patrol when he came across a “weird glowing thingy” after he stopped a group of criminals selling leftover alien tech from Toomes.

 

Both of them learned from the past and communicated more about all of Peter’s Spider-Maning. They had grown closer over the past few months and Peter came to him if he needed help with something he found on patrol. No more using Happy as the middleman (only the chauffeur).

 

“What you got for me tonight, Underoos?” Tony asked as Peter walked closer.

 

“I'm not sure. This was in a load of alien stuff and I know you've been looking for those stones.”

 

 _Those stones._ That's all Peter knew about Thanos and that's all he was ever going to know. He knew the kid would be quick to jump head first into the fight. Tony wasn't letting him join. Not this time.

 

The small stone in Peter’s hand didn't look like an Infinity Stone, but he could be wrong. And he was glad Peter was coming to him.

 

“Well, let's take a look at it.” He held out his hand for Peter to hand it over. But the second both of their hands were touching the stone, a bright white light burst around them and then it all went black.

* * *

Tony blinked his eyes open. His head was pounding as he rolled over to his back. He was lying on the floor and by the look of his ceiling, he was in the middle of his living room.

 

He couldn't remember how he got there. His head hurt like a hangover, but he didn't drink anymore. Not enough to make him feel like _this_ in the morning.

 

With a groan, he covered his eyes with his arm. The lights were way too bright.

 

Another groan from across the room had Tony snapping his eyes open again. He remembered what happened. He wasn't hungover; he was thrown across the room by an exploding stone. And Peter, Peter was there too!

 

He rolled over on his hands and knees and tried to push himself up. “Peter!” He called and his voice sounded weird, but maybe his ears were still messed up from the explosion.

 

Peter didn't answer, so he stood up and looked around the room, searching for the kid. Something wasn't right. He had a really weird feeling and he knew something was wrong, but he didn't care about that until he knew Peter was safe.

 

Just behind the couch, Tony saw a leg sticking out and he hurried over to see Peter. But the second he saw the rest of the body, he stopped dead in his tracks. He wasn't looking down at Peter...he was looking down at himself.

 

“What the fuck?” He said, stumbling back. And he realized that his voice didn't sound weird because of an explosion; it sounded weird because it wasn't his voice.

 

He looked down at his body and pressed his hands against his chest. “No, no, no, no,” he started to mumble as he saw the Spider-Man suit.

 

If he was somehow in Peter’s body, then that meant Peter was the one lying unconscious on the ground in his. Tony fell to his knees and started to shake his shoulder. “Peter, c’mon, wake up.”

 

Peter groaned grumpily but cracked open his eyes a few seconds later. Tony saw in his eyes the exact moment Peter realized what happened. “What... _Mr. Stark?_ ” His eyes were wide as he stared up at him.

 

“Yes,” Tony answered, even though it was so weird to hear his voice say ‘Mr. Stark’. He grabbed Peter’s hand and helped pull him up off the floor.

 

“What happened?” Peter asked, still staring at Tony with wide eyes.

 

“The stone must have switched our bodies.” He looked down at his hands, still covered by the Spider-Man suit.

 

Peter had an anxious smile on his face. “This is kinda cool but also terrifying at the same time.”

 

Tony rolled his eyes. “We have to figure out how to change back. Look around for that stone, maybe if we both touch it again we’ll go back on normal.”

 

“Uh, that may be impossible.”

 

Tony followed Peter’s gaze where he was staring at the pile of red stone pieces. It was destroyed. “That's just great.”

 

Peter didn't sound so excited anymore. “What are we gonna do now, Mr. Stark?”

 

“I've got some calls to make. Come on.”

* * *

”Stop looking at me like that, kid. It's creepy,” Tony muttered as he started up his computers.

 

“Why didn't you tell me?” Peter asked as he grinned over at him smugly.

 

“Because I knew you'd act like this, weirdo.” He threw a screw that was lying around at his head.

 

When they had gone to enter the lab, Tony was in Peter’s body so he had to use his fingerprint and secret word to open the door. Peter had been over the moon that he had access to the lab like Tony did. Usually, he only entered the lab with Tony and Tony was the one to unlock the door.

 

“So I can come in whenever I want?” He asked, sounding even more excited. Tony was a little glad because Peter’d been worried about their current situation until this distracted him.

 

“As long as you let me know, yes,” he replied. He glanced over at him. “Now can you wipe that grin off your face? I can't pull off the over-excited puppy look quite like you can.”

 

“Who are you calling?” Peter asked, wheeling his chair over.

 

“Stephen Strange.”

 

“Ohh, the magician!”

 

“He's not a magician. It's not magic, kid. Magic isn't real. I thought you'd get that.”

 

“Uh huh,” Peter said in disbelief. “Then explain _this_.” He gestured between the two of them.

 

“Science.”

 

Peter rolled his eyes. “I _love_ science, Mr. Stark, but this is pushing it just a little.”

 

“Hush.” Tony pressed the call button and prayed that Strange picked up. A few rings later, the doctor was on the screen.

 

“Stark--you're not Stark…” he trailed off, looking suspicious.

 

“Yes, it's me!” He answered quickly. His voice cracked and Peter giggled behind him. Tony was going to kill that kid. “Strange, it's me.”

 

“Is this another one of your jokes? Because I don't find the humor.” Strange raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest.

 

“No, Mr. Strange, it's really him.” Peter came up beside him.

 

Strange looked at them both and Tony knew he also thinking hard about it because he didn't even correct Peter when he said “Mr.” instead of “Dr.”

 

“What happened?” He asked.

 

“The kid was patrolling and found a stone. We both touched it and then it exploded. We woke up in each other’s bodies,” Tony explained.

 

“It can't be the mind stone...that's inside your artificial intelligence, correct?” Strange asked.

 

“Yeah, Vision has it,” Tony confirmed.

 

“The mind stone is the only one of the Infinity Stones that can do that,” Strange mused. “You probably encountered a stone that had similar abilities.”

 

“Can you change us back?” Peter asked, leaning forward. “Please?”

 

Strange laughed. “Now I know you're not lying. No way Stark ever says please.”

 

Tony rolled his eyes. “Can you fix this or not?”

 

“Yeah, I can,” Strange said and both Tony and Peter sagged in relief. “But, I won't be back in town until Sunday.”

 

“ _What_?” Peter asked and if he were in his own body, his voice would have definitely squeaked.

 

“It's Thursday, Strange. The kid has school and I have a speech on Saturday.” Tony couldn't let this last longer than tonight.

 

“I can’t be back earlier,” Strange said, sounding apologetic.

 

Tony sighed and nodded his head. “Okay. Thanks. See you Sunday.” Then he shut off the call and turned to Peter. “I’m sorry, kiddo, looks like we’re stuck like this for a little longer.”

 

Peter hesitated before he spoke, “Well, at least we can get changed back.”

 

Tony smiled; Peter was always looking on the bright side of things. Sure, this wasn’t going to be easy, but it was only for a few days and who said he couldn’t have a little fun?

* * *

 

A half-hour later, Tony and Peter were both sitting in the living room silently. It was still hard to process that they were both in each other’s bodies. The kid looked anxious, sitting on the couch. It was not a good look on Tony’s face.

 

“Hey, c’mon, before long we’ll be back to normal and we’ll look back at this and laugh.”

 

Peter just looked up at him with a slight glare as he scratched at his chin again. The itch of the facial hair was driving him crazy and Tony found it highly amusing. “You’re in the body of a 15-year-old boy. Why are you smiling?”

 

“You’re in the body of Tony Stark. Why _aren’t_ you smiling?” Tony asked with a smirk. He noticed the kid just looked even more agitated. He felt bad and moved from the chair to take a seat next to him on the couch. “Don’t worry, kid, everything is going to be fine. We can hide in the tower until this passes and then we’ll go back to being normal.”

 

“Mr. Stark, I can’t miss school tomorrow! I have to take my finals!” Peter ran a hand through his hair and Tony cringed at how he was messing up his perfectly styled hair. Now it was styled by an anxious teenager. Great.

 

“Okay, I can go to school for you, kiddo. I don’t know if you know this, but I entered MIT at 15 and graduated at the top of my class. I can pass your high school finals without a problem,” he assured the kid.

 

Peter looked to look relieved at that at least, but he was still on edge. “Mr. Stark...you can’t, _please_ don’t embarrass me.” He looked up at Tony and gave him puppy dogs eyes that Tony never knew he could pull off. (He’d have to use those on Rhodey when he got back into his body).

 

With a laugh, Tony said, “Don’t worry, kid, I’m not going to _embarrass_ you. Do I look like a monster to you? I’m going to go in there, take your tests, talk nerd with your guy in the chair and then come back to the tower. It’ll all be fine.”

 

Peter looked at him with apprehension. “There have to be some ground rules until Sunday.”

 

“Yes, sir,” Tony replied, saluting Peter with two fingers.

 

“No saying or doing anything in each other’s bodies to embarrass each other. No telling anybody what happened. No going to the bathroom with your eyes open and no showering.” Peter listed off each rule off on his fingers.

 

Tony raised his eyebrows. “Um, hate to break it to you kiddo, but I’m in the body of a teenager. Showers are not optional.”

 

“Fine, but keep your eyes closed.”

 

“That’s dangerous but okay. And should I just let the water and soap run off my body because I”m guessing I’m not allowed to touch too?” Now Tony was just teasing the kid and it was fun even to see him get all flustered in a different body.

 

“Nope.”

 

“I’d suggest you just come in and wash it for me since it’s your body, but that’s even weirder.” he couldn't keep a straight face before cracking up in laughter.

 

Despite his attempt to glare, Peter was smiling slightly. “Mr. Stark, this is serious!”

 

“Don’t worry, kiddo, I will not be releasing any naked selfies of you in the recent future. _But_ I have no promises about talking to a certain girl…”

 

Peter grabbed his arm quickly. “Mr. Stark, don’t you dare!” His eyes were wild and frantic.

 

Tony ruffled his hair. “I’m joking. Wow, you need to learn how to just chill out. You worry too much. Do you really think I’d ruin your life in two days?”

 

The only answer he got was a pair of raised eyebrows.

 

“I’m hurt in your lack of trust, Parker.” He sighed. “Okay, you have my word. Do nothing Peter Parker wouldn’t do.”

 

Finally, Peter smiled. “Thanks. I’ll do the same for you.”

 

Tony didn’t need the kid to promise that. He would never do something to purposely hurt him. Hell, Tony could leave every single one of his credit cards in the open and Tony knew the thought of using them wouldn’t even cross his mind.

 

“So…” Peter asked with a grin. “I’m Tony Stark?”

 

Tony nodded his head, wondering what the kid was up to. “Yup.”

 

He turned to look up at the ceiling. “FRIDAY, deploy my suit please.”

 

“You little shit,” Tony said as the whirring o his suit filled up the room. Peter laughed and Tony found himself smiling as well. Peter looked over at him for an okay to get in the suit and Tony nodded his head.

 

Peter gave a giddy smile before stepping forward into the suit and it enclosed around him. He said in awe, “This is so amazing!”

 

“If you get to go around in my suit, that means I get to try yours out.” Tony looked down at his wrists. He knew exactly how to work the suit since he made it.

 

Peter was already hovering with the boot jets. “Sounds good, Mr. Stark.” He flew out the window and Tony webbed himself onto the suit so he could hang off him as he lew throw Manhattan. Peter looked down at him and laughed.

  


They spent almost two hours flying through Manhattan. They raced each other from one building to the other and did some patrolling as well. They saved a few people, even if they were little muggings, people were glad to be rescued by Iron Man and Spider-Man. They were having a great time until Tony heard Peter tell him through the comm., “Uh, Mr. Stark, Ms. Potts is trying to call you. Should I pick up?”

 

“Yes, play it over the comm.”

 

In the next minute, Pepper’s voice filled his suit. “Tony, it’s really sweet that you’re going around with Peter and helping him with his patrolling, but it’s getting late and it’s a school night. You also promised to have dinner with me and here I am with no fiance.”

 

Here came the first time one of them tried to be the other. He was ready to here the kid attempt to pull off his best Tony Stark impression. “Sorry, Pep, we got carried away. We’ll be back soon.”

 

Tony blinked. He didn’t stutter or accidentally call her “Ms. Potts”. He even called her “Pep”. Once the phone call ended, he asked the kid, “Do you practice being me in front of a mirror?”

 

“Totally. I’ve got the sunglasses and everything,” Peter countered back and Tony smiled proudly.

 

“Love the snark, kid, I’m doing great as a parental figure.”

 

“Oh, this is awkward. I learned it from Rhodey.” The kid had the audacity to say as he sailed past Tony. He tried to get away, but Tony shot a web to attach to the chest plate and went along with him.

 

“I’m going to get you for that comment, kid. Don’t think you’re safe,” he warned as Peter continued to laugh. Tony hadn’t heard himself laugh like that for a long time. “And there’s no, ‘you gotta catch me, Mr. Stark’ because I have your spidey powers and you’re the old man now.” Tony was so used to using a high falsetto voice when mocking Peter that he did it this time and it made Peter’s voice ridiculously high. Talking in this voice was probably about to get added to the list of ‘don’t do’s.

  
  


Once Peter landed on the roof of the penthouse, Peter let Tony get his footing before he flew to go in through the window. Tony followed him as he crawled down the roof. He wasn’t a fan of the wall crawling. The way Peter crawled on walls like a spider was hard to do; the kid made it look so easy. But even with the awkward scaling, Tony still managed to keep up with him and when he stepped out of the suit in the living room, Tony jumped on top of him and they went crashing to the ground.

 

“Ha!’ He said triumphantly and quickly webbed Peter’s wrists to the floor.

 

“Hey!” Peter shouted with a grunt as he tried to pull out of the webbing. “I’ve never used my strength against you! Not fair!”

 

Tony laughed. “Shush or else your mouth is getting webbed up next.”

 

“Don’t you dare, Mr.--.” Peter’s cry was cut off by the sound of a throat clearing.

 

“Are you two done?” Pepper asked with raised eyebrows and her hands on her hips.

 

Tony jumped off of Peter and had to hold back from walking over and pulling his fiance into a kiss. Not in Peter’s body. That would be weird. And illegal.

 

“Peter, let Tony up before I change my mind.”

 

Tony rolled his eyes at Pepper ruining his fun, but he supposed that she did think she was helping him. So he used the option in Peter’s suit that had the web dissolvent and sprayed some on Peter’s wrists. He held out a hand for him to grabbed and when he pulled him up, Peter almost went flying across the room. He only stumbled forward until Tony grabbed ahold of his shoulders to steady him.

 

“Sorry,” Tony apologized sincerely. “Not used to my strength yet.”

 

“I know,” Peter answered with a grin because of course, the kid knew. He struggled with the same thing for months after the bite. Tony had Rhodey and Happy help him train and learn to fight with controlled strength.

 

“You better get changed and ready for Happy if you want to get home before it’s too late,” Pepper said to Tony, though she thought she was talking to Peter.

 

“I, uh, Mr. Stark said I could sleep over tonight since it’s almost the weekend,” Tony said.

 

Pepper’s glare turned to Peter and Tony felt a little bad. Almost. “Oh, did he now?”

 

“Uhh…” Peter’s face paled and there went his perfect impression of Tony Stark. “I, uh, well, he uh--.”

 

“I have a lot of studying to do and May’s going to be out all night at work, so Mr. Stark was going to help me prepare for finals.” Tony tried to save him, but Pepper wasn’t looking his way.

 

“That’s why you two were flying around the city then?”

 

“We needed a break. Too much Stoichiometry at once is bad for the brain.” Peter nodded his head.

 

Pepper rolled her eyes. “Okay, I’ll order us some take-out then. You two go wash up, you smell like a gym mat.” She wrinkled her nose before walking away to the kitchen.

 

As Tony and Peter walked to the bathroom, Tony turned to Peter and grinned. “Oh no, we’re going to the bathroom. We better close our eyes.”

 

Peter narrowed his eyes and shoved Tony, but because of his new strength he didn’t even budge and Peter was the one that stumbled to the ground. Tony laughed loudly as he stepped over him. “Watch out, klutz, sheesh.”

 

Peter grabbed his ankle and he fell to the ground beside him. “Ow.” Now it was Peter’s turn to laugh.

* * *

 

After dinner, Pepper was hinting at the time very hard to Tony (again, she thought he was Peter). Tony knew it was because she was hoping to get some alone time with her fiance in the bedroom and having a teenage up and about ruined her plans.

 

Tony might have thought that it was hilarious to watch Peter stumble around because he didn't have spidey powers to balance himself anymore and use very clever ways to get out of the kisses Pepper tried to drop on his lips, but he wasn’t a complete monster to the kid. He was going to do everything he could to help him not be alone with Pepper for too long.

 

It was going well until midnight. Tony tried to argue with her saying that he needed to study with Mr. Stark. Pepper told him that if he didn’t get a good night’s rest then he wouldn’t do well on his tests.

 

“Just one more question!” Tony said, pulling Peter towards the kid’s designated bedroom at the tower.

 

“Fine,” she replied. “I’ll get ready for bed. You meet me in the bedroom.”

 

Once there were in the bedroom, Peter turned to Tony with wide eyes. “Do you think if I stay in here long enough, she’ll fall asleep?”

 

“I don’t think so, kiddo.” He hesitated before saying, “Maybe we should just tell her.”

 

“No!” Peter quickly shouted. “The last time she found out I got hurt on patrol, she told May and I was grounded for a week and I couldn’t go on patrol for a month!”

 

Tony ran his hand through his hair, feeling the curls of Peter’s soft hair. “Maybe just give her a kiss goodnight and tell you’re tired.”

 

Peter blushed as he responded. “Mr. Stark, I can’t, I-I never, I mean, I haven’t even had my, uh, first, you know, _kiss_ before.” His cheeks were bright red and it was painful to hear Tony Stark stuttering like that.

 

Tony covered his face with his hand. “Oh, God, kid, okay. Don’t worry about it. Just go in there, Waste some time in the bathroom and come out and lay down. Tell her you’re not feeling well. Kiss her cheek. You’ll be fine.”

 

Peter was shaking his head. “Mr. Stark, I don’t think...I should be sleeping in the same bed as Ms. Potts, she’s not my fiance and--.”

 

“Kid, she’s mine. If there’s anyone I trust her with, it’s you.” He held onto both of his shoulders and tried to look him in the eye to steady him, but the fact that he had to look up at the kid kinda ruined it.

 

Peter nodded, looking like he was trying to really believe Tony’s words.

 

 _“Sir, Ms. Potts is looking for you,”_ FRIDAY informed them. Peter grew anxious all over again.

 

“Hey, hey,” Tony waited for Peter to meet his eyes before continuing. “It’ll be okay. Just tell her, ‘I haven’t slept in a few days’ if it gets to be too much and I’ll get you outta there.”

 

“Okay,” Peter said before he straightened himself out. Tony gave him a reassuring smile before he walked out.

 

“I’ll be right here, kid,” Tony promised.

* * *

 

Peter walked to Tony’s bedroom slowly, partly because he was putting off seeing Pepper and partly because he wasn’t used to this body and if he tried moving to fast, he usually winded up on his butt. He missed his perfect balance. It was like before the spider bite all over again.

 

He opened the door slowly and saw Pepper sitting in bed in her pajamas reading a book. She looked up when she heard Peter walk in and smiled. “Finally here, huh?’

 

Peter nodded. “I’m just gonna grab my, uh, pajamas and use the bathroom quickly.” He went straight to the dresser on the wall and was not sure which to open. But then one opened for him and Peter smiled at the ceiling. He loved FRIDAY. He grabbed the first t-shirt he saw and a pair of pants before hurrying to the bathroom.

 

He was tempted to keep his eyes closed while he got undressed because those were the rules he told Tony, but he was only striping down to his underwear and if he tried to do that with his eyes closed, he’d fall straight on his face, no doubt. So, he undressed and pulled on his pajamas quickly before he started brushing his teeth.

 

He stayed in there for as long as he possibly could without Pepper getting worried. He quietly opened the door and stepped out into the bedroom, hoping Pepper was asleep, but she was still sitting up in bed reading. When she saw Peter walking over, she put her book on the bedside table. “Hey, babe, finally coming to bed?”

 

Peter slid into bed on the other side and didn’t crawl under the blankets. “Yeah, sorry, I’m not feeling well tonight.”

 

“Oh?” Pepper asked, looking a little concerned. She comes closer to pull Peter closer in her arms. Peter felt his heartbeat quicken. “I think I know what could make you feel better.”

 

“I just haven’t slept in a few days, you know?” Peter said, hoping Tony was still awake.

 

Almost instantly, FRIDAY said, _“Sir, Peter is having a nightmare.”_

 

Peter frowned. _A nightmare? Seriously, Mr. Stark?_

 

Pepper sat up beside him. “Again? That poor kid. He hasn’t had one in so long.”

 

Peter looked from the ceiling to Pepper. _Ms. Potts knew about his nightmares?_ His cheeks flushed. She poked him in the arm with a confused frown. “Aren’t you going to go see him? You usually get him to calm down.”

 

How often did Tony do this, Peter wondered. Did FRIDAY always tell Tony when he was having trouble sleeping and then he would come into his room to calm him down? He hoped not; it made him feel like a baby. He hadn’t need counseling after a nightmare since he was little and still afraid of thunderstorms.

 

But this was his chance to go, so he hopped out of bed and turned to Pepper. “I’ll be right back,” he said even though he had no plans to be right back.

 

She waved him off. “Go, I get it.”

 

Peter nodded and hurried towards the door, only stumbling slightly. He straightened himself back up and hope Pepper didn’t notice, but he heard her barely concealed giggle behind him. He didn’t turn around so she couldn’t see his bright red cheeks.

 

He hurried to his usual bedroom and pushed open the door. He slipped inside and saw Tony sitting on the bed looking at him in amusement. “It worked.”

 

“A nightmare? Seriously?” Peter crossed his arms.

 

Tony shrugged his shoulders. “I knew that would be the only thing she'd believe.”

 

Peter took a seat next to him on the bed. “Do...do you do this often?”

 

Tony was quiet for a long moment before answering, “Not recently. Some nights are worse than others.”

 

“I didn't know. I mean, I always kinda knew someone was here, but I thought it was a dream. When I wake up I'm alone and I can't remember if I even had a nightmare in the first place.” Peter looked down at his lap, feeling embarrassed. He couldn't believe that Tony came into his room to calm him down whenever he had a nightmare. “I'm sorry.”

 

“Don't apologize, kiddo. I'm here for you. The good times and the not so good times.” Tony gave him a small smile.

 

_“Sir, Ms. Potts is approaching the bedroom.”_

 

“Shit,” Tony cursed as he quickly scrambled to the head of the bed. Even though it was his own body, Peter thought it was funny watching Tony frantically dive under the blankets.

 

Peter chuckled and when he was finally settled, Tony said, “Shut up or else I'll go to school in just underwear. Now get over here.”

 

With a frown, Peter came to his side and looked at him questioningly. Tony grabbed his hand and put it in his hair. It was weird running his fingers through is own hair even if it was temporarily Tony’s. “What?”

 

“It's what calms you down,” Tony said, his cheeks flushed slightly.

 

“Oh,” Peter said, unsure of what to do with his fingers. He felt like a baby. He seriously needed Tony to play with his hair in order to fall back asleep?

 

Before Tony could say anything else, there was a light knock at the door. Pepper stuck her head in and her eyes softened when she looked at Tony. “How's he doing?” She asked quietly as she walked in.

 

“G-good. Not too bad.” Peter reminded himself to start moving his fingers through Tony’s hair. He remembered how he liked it when May did it. He heard Tony let out a soft moan at the sensation. Sometimes being extra sensitive worked to his favor.

 

Pepper took a seat on the other side of Tony and fixed the blanket around his shoulders. Peter watched as she was so gentle with him. He always knew Pepper had a soft spot for him, but to see it from this perspective was completely different. She almost looked like a mother.

 

“It's been a while since his last nightmare. I thought he was feeling better,” she whispered sadly.

 

“It's just a bad night,” Peter said, staring down at Tony’s face. Peter never knew how much of a baby he looked when he was sleeping. He wasn't sure if that was worse than the fact Pepper and Tony apparently rocked him back to sleep after nightmares...frequently.

 

“He looks asleep, if you want to head back to bed now,” Pepper said softly. Crap, Peter panicked, their plan was failing.

 

But then Tony grabbed his wrist lightly as Peter shifted and mumbled sleepily, “Stay, Mr. Stark.”

 

Pepper smiled and said, “I love when he does that. It's adorable.”

 

Peter’s scrunched his nose. He was 16-years-old. Definitely not _adorable._ He watched as she laid down just behind Tony and put arm around him. She wiggled her fingers at Peter. Peter extended his free hand and took Pepper’s hand in his.

 

She kissed the back of Tony’s head and whispered, “Good night, Peter.”

 

This looked normal. Like Tony and Pepper were constantly in here after a bad dream. Though he never saw them he woke up. He wondered if they usually stayed through the night.

 

Peter looked down at his body and his heart tinged with pain. He hadn't been held like this between two people since he used to crawl into bed with May and Ben.

 

“You know, Tony, being a dad looks good on you,” Pepper whispered to him, rubbing her thumb on his hand.

 

Looking down at Tony, Peter hoped he was still awake and listening. “I know.”


	2. friday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony meets Flash...

The biggest surprise of this entire ordeal was asking up without needing 5 different alarms from FRIDAY. Sure, getting up was still a pain, but he opened his eyes and didn't feel groggy like he usually did without his morning coffee. 

 

There was someone shaking his shoulder softly. “Peter. Wake up, Peter. You're going to be late if you don't hurry up.” 

 

Tony blinked his eyes open up at Pepper, who was standing above him. She was already dressed in a nice pant suit and her makeup was done. He forgot she would be away for business this weekend. 

 

“If you're late, May won't let you sleep over again on a school night,” she said softly. 

 

“Hmm,” Tony moaned, trying to bury his head deeper in the pillow. “I wanna sleep.”

 

Pepper laughed. “I know, but education calls.” She rubbed his back before walking to the other side of the bed. 

 

Tony grinned when he heard a slap, no doubt Pepper slapping Peter’s ass. “Get up, Tony. You're sleeping the day away.” 

 

Peter grumbled at the rough treatment. He was so used to being babied by Pepper that this was probably a little jarring to him. “S’only like 6. Day starts when I'm up.” 

 

“Oh, really? That's how mornings work?” Pepper asked with raised eyebrows. 

 

“Yeah,” Peter replied without even opening his eyes. “Cus I'm Tony Stark.” 

 

Tony laughed at that and Pepper turned to look at him. “Giggles, get up and dressed while I deal with your annoying mentor.” 

 

Tony had to refrain from rolling his eyes. That would not a Peter Parker thing to do. Unless it was directed to Tony. That brat. 

 

“Yeah, Giggles,” Peter said with a smirk. “Go get ready for class. Don't you have finals to go take?” 

 

Tony narrowed his eyes as Peter continued to lay down with shut eyes. He wore a smirk of his own as he kicked out his foot and it connected with Peter’s side. He fell off the bed and hit the ground with a solid thud and an, “oof”. 

 

“Oh, good, you're up,” Pepper said as she walked towards the bedroom door. “Breakfast is on the table, boys, hurry up.” 

 

When she was gone, Tony sat up and crawled over to peer over the side of the bed. He grinned down at Peter as he laid on the floor. Peter glared at him. “I feel like crap.” 

 

“Yup. That usually happens before at least one cup of coffee,” Tony informed him. It had been so long since he hadn't relied on caffeine. It was good thing Peter didn't eat too much caffeine; Tony could barely keep up with him as it was. 

 

Peter pushed himself up to his elbows and Tony felt bad because he knew how bad his body hurt sometimes, so he held out his hand and offered it to Peter. They clasped hands and Tony pulled him up. 

 

“You take the bathroom first; you need to get out and consume some coffee before you die.” Tony watched him trudge slowly to the bathroom door in amusement. “I'd warn you to keep your eyes closed, but I don't think that'll be a problem. Just don't fall asleep on the toilet. Even though it's my body, that is not something I want to experience. Peel your own ass off the tiles.” 

 

Peter raised his hand up to flip him off before walking inside. Tony laughed loudly. 

 

“Oh, wow,” Peter said loudly from behind the shut door. “Is this a razor? I wonder how I'd look without this goatee.” 

 

“Parker, you touch my face and I will make your life a living hell,” he said, coming close to the bathroom door. It was silent for a moment before Tony heard the buzzing of the electric razor. Tony pounded on the door. “I regret teaching you how to shave. Next time I'll leave you with your peach fuzz.” 

 

Peter laughed. “Don't worry, Mr. Stark, it doesn't look too bad. Remember, last time it grew back.” 

 

Tony hoped he was joking. He didn't think Peter would really shave it, but he wasn't sure by the sound of his voice. He didn't breathe easy until Peter walked back out with his facial hair untouched. 

 

“You're so lucky, Underoos.” Tony waved his finger, walking towards the bathroom. “You're playing with fire and I burn bright.” 

 

“Mhmm,” Peter replied. “We’ll see.” 

 

“Is that a challenge? Are you challenging me, Mr. Parker? I love a good challenge.” Tony grinned at him and just before he shut the door he said, “I'd love to talk more, but I've got tests to take. Big important ones that can decide whether or not I get into college, probably. I don't want to  _ fail  _ them.” 

 

Peter started to yell and Tony grinned. Tony was back on top.

* * *

After breakfast, Pepper said goodbye to them and then Tony got ready for school. It was so weird to pull a backpack over his shoulder. 

 

He told Peter he had the tower to himself for the day until Tony got back. He set him up with snacks and the X-Box, so Tony knew he'd be fine. He wouldn't be surprised if he took a break to go do some patrolling as Iron Man. 

 

But while Peter was playing video games and flying around the city, Tony was going to be stuck in high school all day. This sucked. 

  
  


Happy was giving him a ride and Tony stayed quiet in the backseat, waiting for him to stop in front of Peter’s school. They were in Queens after a few minutes and he noticed Happy staring at him in the rear view mirror. When they made awkward eye contact for the dozenth time, Happy asked, “You feeling okay, kid?” 

 

Tony frowned. “Yeah, I'm fine.” 

 

“You're just very quiet. Usually, I'm begging you to shut up by now.” 

 

“Just thinking,” Tony replied vaguely.

 

“Care to share with the class?” Happy asked. 

 

Tony tilted his head. He wasn't sure exactly how deep Peter and Happy’s relationship went. He knew that the man cared deeply for the kid and even though he tried to hide it, he acted almost like his older brother. “Just stressed. Finals are today.” 

 

Happy nodded in understanding. “Want me to quiz you?” He asked they pulled up in front of the school. “You've got some time before the bell rings.” 

 

Tony smiled. “Thanks, Happy, but I've got it.” He turned to open the door, but it was locked. He turned to the front of the car and said, “It's locked.”

 

“Yeah, I know,” Happy replied as he stared at something out the window. The warmth in his voice was gone and the first thing Tony thought was that someone had figured out Peter's identity or his connection to Tony Stark and were coming for him. But there was no one outside except for small groups of kids.

 

“Um...is there a reason why we're just sitting here then?” 

 

Happy raised his eyebrows and scoffed. “If you think I'm letting you out before that kid goes inside you're crazy.” 

 

Tony frowned. What kid? What was Happy talking about? “What?” 

 

Happy turned around in his seat to look at Tony, looking slightly concerned. “Your little bully is out there waiting by the steps. I'm not pulling you out of another dumpster.” 

 

Tony didn't know whether to be angry or shocked. Peter was being bullied and Tony didn't know about it? Happy did? 

 

“I understand why you want to hide it from Tony...being bullied is embarrassing. Especially for a superhero. And Tony will probably show up at the kids front door to either kill him or burn every college acceptance letter in front of his face. But there's no shame in asking for help sometimes.” 

 

Tony was still speechless. 

 

“And you know I'm here for you, right? If this kid gives you more trouble and you still don't want to go to Tony, I'd be happy to lend a ear.” 

 

“He's being bullied…” Tony finally said softly in disbelief. 

Happy furrowed his brow. “What?” 

 

“Nothing. Nothing.” Tony shook his head, remembering he was Peter right now. Peter would sit here and insist he could handle it by himself and probably beg Happy to drop it. “I'm fine.”

 

“Okay,” Happy said, but it sounded like he wanted to say more. He looked back out the window and the bully must have left because Happy unlocked the door. “I'll be out here after school.” 

 

“I'll see you later,” Tony said as he opened the door and stepped out. Happy waved, but didn't drive away until Peter was inside the school building. 

 

Tony sighed as he looked around the packed hallway. Now, not only did he have to worry about acing Peter’s finals and blend in, but he also had a bully to either avoid like the plague or confront. 

  
  


He walked through the hallway, remembering Peter’s words.  _ It's finals day, so you won't need any books. Don't worry about my locker. I'll text you my schedule, but once you find Ned, you can follow him. He's in all of my classes except two. He'll find you, don't worry.  _

 

And sure enough, before long, there was an arm around his shoulder. “Pete, I've been looking everywhere for you.” 

 

“Hey, Ned.” For the first time since the swap, Tony felt nervous. If Tony wasn't Peter enough, Ned would see right through it. 

 

“Listen, you need to stay away from Flash, okay? Just until he calms down.” The worry was clearly evident in his eyes. 

 

_ Flash.  _ Was that the bully? “Huh?” 

 

Ned sighed heavily, looking around the hallway nervously. “You beat him out for the End of the Year Roundup.  _ Again.  _ And this was his last year to win, so he's pissed.” Tony wasn't sure what the hell that was, but something as stupid as ‘End of the Year Roundup’ definitely did not constitute beating up a kid. “Just stay away from him, okay? And when you can't, just stay behind me.” 

 

Tony smiled. Now he understood why he was Peter’s guy in the chair. He was a loyal friend that obviously would give up his life for Peter’s. Him and Tony had more in common than he knew. 

 

“Okay, I'll stay away,” Tony promised, even though he was planning on doing the exact opposite. But by the way Ned’s shoulders deflated, Tony figured he was good at being Peter. 

 

Until he met this Flash dick face because if he even tried to shove ‘Peter’, Tony wasn't letting him go unscathed. 

 

* * *

 

The day continued on well. Tony breezed through every final he took, but by the fourth period, he had a raging headache. He was in the middle of taking Peter’s Calculus final when it became unbearable. 

 

The lights were way too bright even as when he squinted at the paper. The kid in a completely different classroom wouldn't stop clicking his pen. Someone somewhere was eating peanut butter that churned Tony’s stomach. His head was buzzing at everything around him. 

 

He let his head drop to the desk. Maybe a quick break would give him a chance to get better. He needed to focus to pass this test. But even with his eyes closed and his head resting, he didn't think it was getting any better. 

 

“Mr. Parker, if you're so sleepy, then maybe I should just take your final from you now.” The voice was right by him and loud, too loud. 

 

A voice spoke up from next to him. “Sir, it's just a migraine. If I could take him to the nurse quickly, he'll be okay.” It was Ned, having his back again. 

 

“Are you Peter’s keeper now, Mr. Leeds?”

 

The class laughed. 

 

Tony needed them all to shut up. He groaned.

 

“Please, sir, I'll be right back.” Ned sounded desperate. And scared. 

 

“Fine. But whatever time you waste will not be given back to you. So hurry up.” 

 

“Yes, sir.” Ned’s chair scraped against the floor. Then there were a pair of hands on his shoulders. Ned was whispering in his ear, but it sounded like he was screaming. “Come on, Pete, everyone's staring.” 

 

Tony wanted to do nothing but crawl into a ball and ignore everyone, but he was in Peter’s body. He promised not to embarrass him. If he did that, it would definitely break that rule. 

 

So, he let Ned guide him out of the classroom and down the hall. They stopped at a locker and Ned started to spin the dial. “Why didn't you tell me it was a Bad Day?” Ned asked as he pulled open the door. The hinges squeaked. 

 

Ned started to push him again, this time into a bathroom before shutting and locking the door. He eased Peter to the ground and then started to rustle around a bag. “You're supposed to watch out for this.” 

 

Tony had no idea what was going on. Did Peter suffer through this a lot? Was this normal? Oh, God, for the kid’s sake, he hoped not. He pried his eyes open and saw Ned pull out a small bottle of aspirin and a water bottle. 

 

He put the water in one of his hands and held three tablets in his own hand. “C’mon, this will help.” 

 

Tony nodded and took the tablets and swallowed them desperately as he drank the water. He didn't stop until it was empty. Ned was silent for a few minutes after that as they waited for it to kick in. 

 

It didn't disappear, but it turned it into a small throb. He opened his eyes and said quietly, because everything was still too loud. “Go finish your test.” 

 

Ned scoffed. “I'm not leaving you here like this. It's fine, I finished like 70% of it anyway.” Ned started to rub his hand. “What about you? How much did you get done?” 

 

Tony groaned.  _ Not enough.  _

 

“It's okay. I'm sure Mr. Albert will let you finish it later. He saw how bad you were.” 

 

Tony hoped so, but at the moment, a failed final didn't seem as bad as whatever the fuck  _ this  _ was. 

 

“Is everything still too much?” Ned asked softly, changing the conversation. “It's a sensory overload, right?” 

 

Of course. Peter had told him about that, but never in this detail. Tony assumed after a few months of being Spider-Man, he got used to his new senses. Maybe he did and Tony was only feeling this because he was new to it. 

 

Something slipped onto Tony’s face and he peeked his eyes open. Ned had put a pair of sunglasses on his face. But they weren't normal glasses. They were dark and probably made it impossible for a normal person to see out of them, but for Tony, it lowered everything around him to a manageable brightness. 

 

He already could let his shoulders relax. “Thanks, Ned,” he mumbled. 

 

Ned rubbed his shoulder and even though touching should be a big no-no right now, Tony found it soothing and he leaned into the touch. “No problem, Peter.”

 

There was Ned saving the day again. 

  
  


It got better after that. They stayed in the bathroom for the rest of the period. When he stepped into the hallway with the glasses still on his face, it was so much better.

 

Ned saw his relief and laughed. “I know those glasses work wonders. I just wish you would tell Mr. Stark about this. You know he couldn't make something that could get rid of this all together.” 

 

Tony sighed. Another thing Peter kept from him.

* * *

 

Flash made his appearance the period after that. Physics class. He wasn't sure it was Flash, but he took an educated guess. 

 

“Yo, Penis. What are you doing with those glasses?” He clapped Tony hard on the back. “Trying to be like Tony Stark?” He laughed loudly. “Not that I blame you. I wouldn't want to be Peter Parker either. No one does, actually.” 

 

Tony narrowed his eyes, ready to flip shit on this asshole, but then the bell rang and the teacher told them to be quiet. He turned to start answering the questions on his paper when suddenly, the seat beneath him was gone. He yelped as he fell to the floor. He barely managed to not smack his chin against the lab table. 

 

He heard a small group of chuckles behind him and he hated that he felt his face heat up as he stood back up and picked up the stool that had been kicked from under him. Starting a fight now before Peter’s test wouldn’t help him, so he ignored Flash just long enough to wait for the tests to be handed in and the bell to ring. 

 

“Leave me alone, jackass,” Tony said to him once they were both in the hallway. Ned tried tugging on his sleeve, but Tony refused to move. 

 

“What was that?” Flash looked down at him with an ugly sneer.

 

“You heard me. Do I have to spell it out for you? I know I’m smarter than you, but you get upset when you realize that, so I really don’t want to bring it up.” By the look in Flash’s eyes and the way Ned went rigid, Tony guessed Peter never talked back like this. 

 

Flash grabbed Tony by the collar of his shirt and slammed him against the locker. “You suddenly grow some balls, Penis?”

 

“Flash, leave him alone,” Ned said, trying to pull Flash away from Tony. 

 

“Shut up, Fatso, I’ve got a bug to squish,” that prick said, shoving Ned away from him. 

 

Tony wanted to laugh at the irony, but he was too upset at the fact that Flash dared to call Peter’s best friend a “fatso”. He growled and warned, “Leave Ned alone or else you’ll regret it.” 

 

Flash laughed. “Oh, really? What are you going to do if I touch your boyfriend? Huh?” He didn’t wait for Tony’s response before he suddenly grabbed the glasses off his face. Tony flinched and he wasn’t sure if it was because everything was bright and agonizing again or if it was because Peter’s body was so used to flinching when Flash raised a hand to him. He hoped it was the former. “Get these things off your face, freak.” He threw the glasses to the ground behind him. Ned quickly bent down to pick them up before someone could step on them. 

 

Tony wanted to punch him. He wanted to kill him, actually. That would teach his prick not to mess with his kid. But he saw the crowd surrounding them and knew he couldn't use any special spider powers to teach Flash a lesson. That would drag too much attention to Peter. 

 

“You think he still fits in his locker?” One of Flash’s little buddies quipped from next to him. 

 

Oh, there was no way in hell Tony was getting shoved in a locker. There was no way in hell he was letting Peter get shoved into a locker. 

 

Thankfully, before Tony could do anything about it, a loud authoritative voice broke through the hallway. “What is going on here? 

 

Flash let go of Tony so abruptly he fell to the floor of the hallway. He glared down at him as he took a step a back. The crowd of kids surrounding them dispersed as a man came storming through. 

 

“Mr. Thompson and Mr. Parker! What did I say about fighting last time?” He crossed his arms over his chest looking from Flash to Tony. 

 

“Sorry, Principal Morita, Peter fell and I was just trying to help him up,” Flash lied easily. 

 

“Yeah, Mr. Thompson, that sounds right,” the principal replied sarcastically with a roll of his eyes. “Get to class now before I have you miss a final for in school detention.” 

 

Flash nodded and sent one last murderous glare at Tony before scurrying away. 

 

Tony turned his wide eyes back to the principal that just let a bully walk away. “He's not going to get in trouble for shoving me against a locker?” 

 

The man sighed heavily, sounding a little annoyed. “Mr. Parker, it's just a little rough housing. And besides, you know who his parents are. They are  _ very  _ influential with the school board. I told you, your best bet is to just stay away from him. Then he can't bother you, right?” 

 

Tony was fuming. This man was  _ principal  _ of the school? How were kids supposed to stand up to bullies if their principal didn't? He acted like it was Peter’s fault he was Flash’s victim, like he  _ asked  _ to be harassed everyday. 

 

Ned sensed something coming, so he grabbed Tony’s arm and whispered. “C’mon, Peter, let's go to class. We're going to be late.” 

 

Tony let himself be dragged away by Ned. Neither of them said a word. Ned handed him the glasses and Tony scowled at the crack in the left lens. Great. At least his senses weren't bothering him as much so he didn't  _ need  _ the glasses. 

 

“I'm sorry,” Ned apologized, “I didn't know he was waiting.” 

 

“It's okay,” Tony said. “It’s not your fault.” Ned did everything he could to keep Peter to safe. Tony could never thank him enough. 

 

“Just ignore him and he'll get bored,” Ned said before taking his seat. 

 

_ Oh, no.  _ Tony was not ignoring him. If Flash came near him again today, he was going to regret it.

* * *

Even though every test was simple for Tony, it was still draining. So, lunch was a much needed break. He took a seat next to Ned and let out a breath or relief. 

 

Ned must have sensed his stress and he patted his shoulder. “We’re almost done. Three periods left and they're pretty easy.” 

 

His only problem was that with all the excitement back at the tower, Tony entirely forgot about lunch and packing food. He didn't even have his wallet to go up and buy something. He sighed heavily and slumped forward, feeling the hunger gnawing at his stomach. 

 

Peter played it off well, but this kid got hungry again only an hour or so after eating. Starving by a few hours. All of his snacking at the tower made sense. 

 

Ned heard the ugly noise his stomach made and turned to face him. “Do you have lunch?” 

 

Tony frowned guiltily. “I forgot, but I'm fine. Really.” A little too late, he realized he was doing the same thing he hated Peter doing: saying he was fine when he clearly wasn't just so he wasn't a bother. 

 

“When was the last time you ate?” Ned continued on, ignoring Tony’s claim. 

 

“Uh, breakfast.” 

 

Ned’s eyes widened. “Breakfast? Peter, you know you're supposed to be eating throughout the day. Where are your snacks? Did you forget those too?” 

 

“Y-yeah, sorry,” Tony muttered, feeling embarrassed. 

 

Ned rolled his eyes, somewhat fondly. “What am I going to do with you?” He pushed his sandwich to Peter. “Here. Eat.”

 

Tony’s mouth watered at the site of the food, but he held back. “I can't eat your food, Ned. I'll be--.” 

 

“Starving by last period. Come on, eat. You like peanut butter more than me anyway. I'll go get something else,” Ned said as he stood up and walked to the line of kids waiting for food. 

 

Tony hesitated, but after his stomach rumbled again, he picked up a half and took a bite. He barely had time to enjoy the savory taste of peanut butter and Nutella before someone plopped their tray right in front of him. Tony wasn't hungry anymore when he saw whom it belonged it to. 

 

“Heya, Penis, how are you?” Flash said with fake cheer. Seriously, what was this kid's issue. And  _ Penis, really?  _

 

Tony turned his head down to ignore him and keep eating. He hated how he felt his heart beating rapidly in his chest. He hated that this is how Flash made Peter feel. 

 

Flash smacked his hand against the table next to Tony’s sandwich. He laughed when Tony flinched at the sound.  _ Where was Ned?  _ Tony chased that thought out of his mind; he was a 50-year-old man. He wasn’t scared of a high school bully. But Peter was. And Peter seemed to look for safety in his best friend. 

 

“I'm talking to you, nerd.” 

 

Tony looked up at him with as much disinterest as possible. “Can I help you?” 

 

Flash looked down at his bitten sandwich in front of Peter and pulled it closer to him. Before Tony could protest, Flash was pulling the bread apart and swiped his finger through the peanut butter. He stuck his finger in his mouth and “mmm”ed. Tony glared at him as he shoved back the sandwich. 

 

“Any reason you’re eating your boyfriend’s lunch?”

 

“Any reason you’re such an asshole?”

 

Flash glared. “You’re pretty ballsy for someone without his little bodyguard.” Then he smirked. “But, don’t worry, I think we’ve got some time to ourselves for a bit.” 

 

Tony sat up straighter. “What did you do?” 

 

With a wave of his hand, Flash said, “Don’t worry about him. I would be more worried about you.” 

 

Tony crossed his arms over his chest. “You don’t scare me.” 

 

Flash ignored him. “So, seriously, what’s with the no lunch? Mommy forgot to pack it?” He sucked in a quick breath. “Oh, wait... _ sorry _ , you don’t have one of those.” 

 

Tony felt his blood boiling. How dare this kid try and speak to Peter like this? Was it cool nowadays to make fun of someone for having dead parents? Back when he was a kid, a bully would beat you until they got bored and left. This kid preferred words to cut as his weapons and it worked. 

 

“Is your auntie short on cash? Tell me: how does she afford sending you to this school when she can barely keep a roof over your head?” 

 

“It’s called an academic scholarship. Maybe if you had more than 2 brain cells, you’d know what that is,” Tony snapped back and watched in satisfaction as Flash’s eye twitched. He probably wasn’t used to Peter fighting back. 

 

“Really? Are you sure? Last I heard, you spend a lot of time on your knees for this spot in school and these grades.” Flash wore an ugly smirk. “Brandon said he saw it with his own eyes after school. You have lots of fun in detention, don’t you?”

 

Tony couldn’t believe what this kid was insinuating. He was actually spreading rumors about Peter doing  _ that  _ just because he hurt this prick’s fragile little ego. 

 

“Hey, Eugene, do you mind? I’m trying to eat here and your big crush on Peter is showing. It’s disgusting me,” another voice, from the other side of the table cut in. 

 

Tony and Flash’s heads whipped around to face where it came from. There was a teenage girl sitting there with a bored look on her face. In one hand, she was holding a book and in the other, she was chewing on a carrot stick. Tony had never seen this girl before in his life, but the moment his eyes laid on her, he heard Peter’s voice in his head and knew exactly who she was. 

 

_ “She’s just really beautiful, Mr. Stark. In the ‘doesn’t try to be beautiful’ way. And she’s smart, super smart. I look at her and my heart just starts fluttering and I can barely remember my own name.”  _

  
  


“I-I don’t have a crush on Penis Parker!” Flash sputtered, his cheeks burning red. 

 

Tony turned back to Flash and laughed at the expression on his face. MJ didn’t stop there; she even put down her book to regard him carefully with a tilted head. “I mean it’s either that, jealousy because he’s so much smarter than you or overcompensating for...something.” Her eyes fell on his lap and she raised her eyebrows pointedly. 

 

Flash covered his crotch with a hand and said, “You don’t know what you’re talking about, bitch.” His face was red in anger now. 

 

“Tiny dick it is.” 

 

Tony couldn’t hold back his laughter and Flash swirled around to face him. “You think this is so funny, freak? You won’t have one of your loser friends to protect you every second, so watch your back.” He shoved his tray roughly across the table and it would have spilt all over Tony’s lap if he didn’t use Peter’ spidey powers to his advantage and shove it right back. 

 

Flash didn’t have time to get up before the food was spilling all over his lap. He jumped out of the seat after it was too late. His jeans were covered in whatever the hell this school called “food”. He snarled at Peter. “You’re gonna fuckin’ regret that, faggot.” 

 

Then he was storming off out of the cafeteria as many students pointed and whispered. Tony made sure his laughter could be heard until he was gone. He stopped when he couldn’t see him anymore and sagged in relief. Dealing with that shithead was exhausting. 

 

Tony had no idea how Peter dealt with him all day and then came home to go deal with more assholes on patrol. Did he ever get a break? He sighed, wishing he could change it all for this poor kid. 

 

He turned to the other side of the table where MJ was reading her book again. “Hey,” Tony said, catching her attention. “Thanks.” 

 

She didn’t pick her head up, but she looked over at him. “No problem, loser.” Then she went back to her book. 

 

Her response was clipped and it seemed like she couldn't care less about anything around her, but Tony saw a softness in her eyes. It was there for no more than a second and he was sure that was something that only came out for Peter. 

 

Ned came back over, holding a tray in his hand and looked at the mess on the floor. He squinted at Tony. “What did I miss?”

* * *

It was the last period of the day and Tony was definitely on alert. He hadn’t seen Flash since he shoved his lunch on him. 

 

Hopefully, he didn't show up again. But part of him wanted him to “teach him a lesson” today so he didn't do it when Peter was back in his body. Actually, all of him wanted that. Maybe if he found Flash and pissed him off a little more, he'd get it all out today. 

 

He could take Flash’s beatings and he was sure Peter could too, but he didn't have to. 

 

At least, in this period he didn't have a final to take. Their final was a written essay they had a week to write at home. They were getting their grades back today in class. Tony was ready to collect Peter’s A and then pin it to the fridge at the tower. 

 

The teacher, Tony wasn't sure what his name was, was walking around and handing out the marked essays. Ned got his and showed Tony his A+. Tony smiled widely and congratulated him, not that he was surprised. Ned was super smart. 

 

Tony waited patiently for Peter’s, but it never came. The teacher stopped beside him and said, “Mr. Parker, you can see me after class for yours.”

 

Ned sent him a concerned look and Tony stared back in confusion. Tony knew Peter put his best effort into this final. He spent days at his table in the workshop writing away. He wouldn't even let Tony read any of it when he asked. 

 

The rest of the class, Tony paid no attention. He was too worried about what this meant. Was it bad? This was a final; if Peter did poorly would that severely affect his grade. 

 

His anxiety remained fee entire class and only increased when the bell rang. Tony gulped as he stated at the front of the classroom and his teacher was staring back. Ned whispered, “I'll meet you outside,” before he left the classroom.  

 

Once it was just the two of them, Tony walked to the front of the classroom. The teacher wasted no time. “I understand we've had our issues in the past, Mr. Parker, but I thought you would be smarter than this.” 

 

“I'm sorry, what do you mean?” Tony asked with a frown. Why did this teacher “have issues” with Peter? He was the best damn kid in this entire school. 

 

“You do know what the assignment was, correct?” 

 

Tony honestly didn't know. The most he got from Peter was something about an innovator in the field of technology. 

 

When he didn't reply, the teacher answered for him, “Write a 3-5 page paper on how Howard Stark, one of the founders of this very school, was one of the best innovators of the technology field of all time.” 

 

Tony’s eyes widened. That's why Peter hadn't wanted him to know what he has writing. Because he was writing a project about his dad. Peter knew Tony was a big fan of the guy. He probably just didn't want to make things awkward. 

 

But why would he let his grade suffer? He could have had Tony’s help. He would have told him things none of his classmates would know to write about. 

 

“So, please tell me why I received a 15 page paper about why  _ Tony  _ Stark is the true hero in that family?” The teacher looked angry as he held out and essay. 

 

Tony didn't think he heard him correctly. Peter did what? He took the papers from him and looked for himself. He flipped through and yeah, it was all about Tony. 15 pages about why Peter Parker thought Tony Stark was the true hero. 

 

He looked up from the paper to this teacher. His teacher looked  _ livid.  _ “Care to explain? Do you think it's funny? This was your final and you pull a joke like  _ this _ ? It's ridiculous.”

 

Tony was still speechless. He had nothing to say. 

 

“You've got an F. 20% of your final grade is an F,” he said. “You shouldn't have played this game, Parker. I told you you'd lose.’

 

Tony barely heard a word he was saying. He was too busy staring down at the words on the paper. Peter wrote about  _ him _ ; he thought he, Tony Stark, was a hero. 

“Expect a phone call home. Goodbye, Mr. Parker.” 

 

Tony just nodded. (When that phone call came, Tony would be the one answering, not May). He walked out of the classroom, his eyes never leaving the paper. 

 

_ To me, a hero is someone puts themselves last. They go out of their way to make sure other people are okay not because they think it's the right thing to do but because there's something inside them that calls them to do more. Some people are made to be heroes. People like Tony Stark.  _

 

“Peter! What happened?” Ned came to his side and started reading over his shoulder. “ _ Dude,  _ what the hell? This was our final! I know the guy hates you because you defend Mr. Stark  _ every time  _ he talks crap about him, but seriously? You wrote an entire essay on the one man that Mr. Kyatt can't stand.”

 

Peter defended him in class? 

 

“This isn't your Tony Stark blog, okay, sometimes you have to know when to just let it go. You can't defend himself from everyone that looks at him the wrong way.” 

 

“But--.” 

 

“I know, I know,” Ned said, “They don't see the Mr. Stark you see, but there's a time for it. And a final project worth 20% of your grade was not it.” 

 

Tony’s head was in a whirlwind. He was learning so much about Peter that the kid would probably hate to know that he now knew. He had a blog for him? He spent his time telling people how great of a person Tony Stark was? 

 

He didn't deserve this. He didn't deserve this kid. No one deserved this kid. He was--. 

 

“Whatcha got there, Penis?” The paper was ripped from his hands and before he could get it back, Flash starting reading out loud, “Tony Stark is my hero…” He trailed off with a fit of laughter. “I always knew your obsession with him was a little weird, but I never thought it was like this. I mean, your therapist probably tells you it's just hero worship right? I bet you didn't show her your fucking 30 page love letter to him.”

 

“Give it back, Flash,” Tony demanded, curling his hand into a fist. 

 

“No thanks,” he replied and then he started reading again in a high voice, “ _ He lost his parents just like me--”  _ he switched back to his normal voice. “Oh, for fuck’s sake, Parker, get over it. You were like 2. You don't even remember them.”

 

“Flash,--.”

 

“Are you sure they died in an accident? Maybe they saw how much of a freak their son was and decided they needed out.” 

 

Tony saw red. 

 

“Is that what your hard-on for Tony Stark is about? Repressed daddy issues? First Daddy and then Uncle Ben.” Flash chuckled. “Now that’s definitely a relief. Imagine if _he_ had to see what you turned out to be? Fucking faggot jacking off to a 50-year-old man in a metal suit? Be thankful he didn't have to watch the rest of--.” 

 

That's where he drew the line. Uncle Ben was not something a kid like Flash could torment Peter for. Not when he still was able to go home to his family. 

 

Tony cracked. Immediately, his hands grabbed Flash’s collar and slammed him so hard against the lockers that the sound echoed throughout the hallway. Kids around them stopped to see what was going on, but Tony barely noticed.

 

“Don't  _ ever  _ talk about him. I may not be perfect, but Ben was and if you say shit like that again I will kill you.” 

 

“P-Parker, calm down. I was joking,” Flash stuttered, looking scared. 

 

“ _ Joking? _ ” Tony repeated incredulously. “You make hi--my life a living hell everyday for fun and you think it's a joke? Because I'm smarter than you? That can't be what all of this is about. What has you so  _ fucked up  _ that you get joy in hurting me?” 

 

Flash’s eyes were wide, staring at Tony like he was insane. Tony felt Ned grabbing his arm. “Peter,” he whispered, “stop. Everyone's staring.” 

 

Tony scoffed. “I don't give a shit. That's all anyone seems capable of doing in this damned school. Staring while a kid is mercilessly bullied by some spoiled brat.” 

 

“I'm tired of it. I'm so  _ fucking  _ done and it's only been one day.” It was taking all of Tony to stop from saying “him” instead of “me”. He was supposed to be standing up for  _ himself  _ because everyone thought he was Peter. 

 

“Let him go, freak!” Someone shouted from the growing crowd of students behind him. 

 

Tony’s heart beat faster. This wasn't supposed to happen. When one kid stood up to a bully, weren't all the other kids supposed to gain that same courage? 

 

But whatever, Tony wasn't finished with this kid yet. “Come near me again and you'll regret it, asshole. I can promise you that.” Tony threw him to the ground and he fell with a thud. 

 

He looked up at Tony with hate his eyes. “You're a fucking freak, Parker. One moment of bravery won't change that.” 

 

Tony pulled back his foot and Flash flinched violently. He lowered it with a smirk. “Maybe not, but it made you afraid.” He paused. “It doesn't feel nice, does it?” 

 

Flash didn’t respond after that and Tony let himself be dragged away from the center of attention by Ned. He could hear the whispers as he left. People  _ still  _ saw Peter as a social parasite because he stood up for himself. This poor kid could never win. 

 

Tony barely registered where they were going until he heard the click of a door locking. He looked around the boys’ bathroom and was shocked when all of a sudden there was an arm against his throat. Ned’s angry face was right in front of him. “Who are you?”

 

Tony sputtered, holding Ned’s arm so it didn’t press tighter against his throat. “What? Ned, it’s Peter.”

 

“Shut up. I know my best friend. You’re not him.” Ned glared at him. “I thought you seemed a little off today, but I thought it was just a bad day. But that wasn’t my Peter. He wouldn’t do that. He wouldn’t say that stuff.” Ned hesitated. “He  _ should,  _ but I know that’s not him. So I’ll give you one more chance, who the hell are you?”

 

There was no fooling him, Tony realized, so he sighed and said, “It’s me. Tony.” 

 

Ned furrowed his eyebrows. “What? Tony who?”

 

“Tony...Stark.”

 

Ned didn’t move. It took a long moment for him to even speak. “What are you talking about?”

 

“After patrol, Peter came to me with a stone he found. We both touched it and  _ boom _ , we woke up in each other’s bodies,” Tony recapped. It was a crazy story to believe and if he were Ned, he would have laughed right in his face. 

 

“And how am I supposed to know you’re not lying?” Ned asked, still looking skeptical. 

 

Tony sighed, trying to think of something that he and Ned would know but not Peter. He grinned. “You’re getting him Broadway tickets for his birthday!” Tony had been the one that Ned confided in for that because he knew the man would have some hook-ups to get them good seats. Tony did that and more. 

 

Immediately, Ned let him go. “Oh, my God, Mr. Stark, I am  _ so  _ sorry.”

 

He shook his head, waving him off. “It’s fine...you know you’re pretty scary when you want to be. Strong too.” 

 

Ned smiled bashfully. “I can’t be helpless, not when I’m Peter’s guy in the chair.” 

 

Tony laughed. “Yeah, well, he’s very lucky to have you as his best friend  _ and  _ guy in the chair.” 

 

Ned blushed at the compliment, but still apologized, “I’m sorry, this is just so weird talking to you. You look and sound like Peter, but you’re not Peter. You’re Mr. Stark-- oh, my God, you’re Mr. Stark. That means--.”

 

“That I know the kid has been hiding the fact that he’s being bullied from me?” Tony asked with a raised eyebrow. “Yes. And you have no idea how much restraint it took for me not to kill Flash, that fucking pussy.”

 

Ned cringed, probably not used to hearing curse words like those coming from Peter’s mouth. “It’s nothing personal against you, Mr. Stark. He hid it from everybody he could. He doesn’t want to make it a big deal.” 

 

Tony rolled his eyes at the kid’s stupidity. This isn’t something you hide. “Too late. He’s getting an earful when I get home.” 

 

“He’s going to be so embarrassed!” Ned said quickly. “That’s why he hid it; he was embarrassed that Spider-Man was bullied by a kid in high school.” Ned’s eyes widened when his they caught sight of the paper in his hand he must have taken off the floor when Flash dropped it. “And holy crap, you know about his essay. Oh, God, he’s going to change his name and move to another country!”

 

Tony looked at that paper again. Despite the big  _ F  _ on the top of the page, Tony wanted to frame it. He wanted to hang it on the wall of his workshop just to be reminded that the best kid in the entire world thought he was a  _ hero _ . “I'm Peter’s hero?” 

 

Even though, he said it to himself, Ned answered, “Well, yeah. Since like forever.” 

 

Tony didn't understand why. He could look up to  _ anybody  _ and he chose Tony Stark? “I don't deserve it. I don't deserve him,” he admitted. 

 

Ned smiled softly. “Yeah, Mr. Stark, you don't. But don't worry, between you and me, I don't think  _ anyone  _ will ever deserve Peter.” 

 

Tony felt a lump growing in his throat. He didn't know why. There was no reason for him to be crying. “He...does Peter go through that a lot?” 

 

Ned sighed. “It's not always this bad, but there is hardly a day when Peter doesn't have to deal with Flash’s bullshit.” He glanced at Tony in uncertainty, like he wasn't sure if it was he was allowed to curse.

 

“Thank you for having his back,” Tony said quietly. “I'm not sure how he'd get through this without you.” 

 

“What are best friends for?” 

 

Tony nodded, and stared down at the floor silently. He wanted to walk out of there with his head held high so Flash would know his words didn't hurt him. What he said shouldn't matter to Peter. But he couldn't. His eyes were burning and he couldn't get Flash’s words out of his head. 

 

“Uh, Mr. Stark?” Ned cleared his throat. “Are you okay?”

 

Tony frowned. “What?” But then he wiped at his cheek and was surprised to feel they were damp. “It's Peter. I don't...I mean, he's in control with the uh, emotions and stuff because…” 

 

“Yeah, Peter’s always been emotional, but especially after the bite and everything's heightened, including his feelings.” Ned tried to smile. 

 

“He...does he talk about Peter like that a lot? Does...does Peter believe him?” Tony swallowed, wiping at his other cheek. “He can't really believe this, right?” 

 

Ned shrugged his shoulders. “He doesn't always. But sometimes it hits harder than others. Uncle Ben always gets him, usually everything else he can ignore...kinda…” 

 

Tony and Ned both know Peter didn't just brush Flash’s words away. The kid had too much heart and while Tony loved that about it him, it also made it that much easier to hurt him.

 

“Freak is also a bad one. He doesn't like being called a freak.” 

 

Tony scoffed. “I can't imagine anyone that would.” 

 

“Yeah, but he thinks he's actually a freak...especially after the bite. So, Flash calling him that just hits too close. Today, he just kept going after him-- _ you.”  _ Ned looked sheepish when he said, “I'm sorry for saying this, but I'm kinda glad it was you today instead of Peter. If this were him…” Ned shook his head. “It would take a while for him to come back from this.”

 

“No, don't worry. I'm glad too. I just wish I could protect him from all this crap, ya know?” Tony ran a hand through his hair. 

 

“Well, how about I watch his back here. I'll continue to protect him in here and when he's out there saving the world, you have his back. Like teamwork.” 

 

Tony laughed, sniffling the last remaining evidence of his tears away. “Sounds good, kid.” Ned smiled at him just as Peter’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and read the notification; it was a text from Happy.

 

_ I _ **_'m out front. U ok?_ **

 

**_I'm fine. Coming out now._ **

 

Tony wiped at his face once more and checked the mirror. His eyes looked slightly puffy, but it was only noticeable if someone really stared at him. 

 

“I've gotta go. Happy’s looking for me.” Peter nodded his head towards the door. 

 

“Does he know?” Ned whispered, even though they were the only two people in the bathroom. 

 

“Besides for Peter and I, you're the only other one that knows.” 

 

Ned gasped. “ _ Really _ ? That is so freakin’ awesome! I mean for you two, it may suck a little, but my Tony Stark is inside my best friend!”

 

“Please  _ never _ say that again.” 

 

“I promise I won't tell another soul. I kept the Spider-Man secret I'll keep this one too!” Ned nodded his head, looking very serious like he was getting ready for a secret mission. 

 

“Good. Don't worry: your Peter will be back by Monday.” 

 

Ned smiled. “Good luck with everything...and maybe go easy on him when you get home?” 

 

Tony sighed. He wanted to yell at the kid, but he didn't want him to think Tony was mad at him because he was bullied. That wasn't his fault. 

 

“I'm not going to make the kid cry.” Tony rolled his eyes. “He's in my body right now and I really don't like seeing myself cry. It's not pretty.” 

 

Ned laughed. “Yeah, and if you make my best friend cry again, I'm gonna have to hurt you.” 

 

Tony paused. “Again?”

 

Ned snapped his mouth shut. “What? I didn't say again. I don't know what you're talking about. And don't ask Peter about it, don't even mention it, okay?” 

 

Tony narrowed his eyes. “Ned.”

 

“You didn't hear from me, but after you took away the suit he was really upset. He called me and told me about losing the internship. He was really torn up about letting you down.” 

 

“He never let me down,” Tony said softly. “I'm the only that let  _ him  _ down...I didn't want to do it again.”

 

“You didn't let him down, Mr. Stark. I know how he can be.” He laughed and clarified, “like an over excitable puppy. But he's learning and he's safer and that's all because of you.”

 

Tony shook his head. “No, Ned--.” 

 

“He needs a dad like figure to look up to...and I'm glad it's you,” Ned said softly. 

 

“I'm only gonna mess him up and ruin his life,” Tony argued. “Like today...I didn't do anything but piss Flash off even more.” 

 

Bed rolled his eyes. “Flash isn't your fault. And I know he's not going to just leave him alone because Peter stood up to him once. But that's my job to have his back here. You're helping him, whether you know it or not. Whether  _ Peter  _ even knows it, he's changed since you started to spend time with him.”

 

Tony never saw it that way. He didn't think inviting the kid over to the compound a few weekends every month would make all the difference in Peter’s life. Sure, he was helping Spider-Man, but he never knew how much he was helping Peter Parker. 

 

“So, thank you for looking out for him when I can't.” Ned gave him a lopsided smile. 

 

Tony placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled back. “I think I should be the one thanking you. We just gotta keep pulling him back up until everyone else can see him the way we do.” 

 

“I've been doing that for years. It's nice to finally have someone on my side. Maybe we should start with getting Peter to realize it.” 

 

“Sounds like we've got our work cut out for us, Leeds.”

 

“That we do, Mr. Stark.” Ned laughed. “But, I think we can handle it. 

 

**_Kid, I will come in looking for you_ **

 

Tony rolled his eyes. “I gotta go. Mama Bear Happy is getting upset.” 

 

**_I'm omw be there in like 2 min_ **

 

Ned and Tony left the bathroom, keeping a lookout for Flash. Thankfully, he was nowhere to be seen. Tony wouldn't have been able to promise he'd be okay if Happy caught sight of him. 

 

Before Tony hopped into the car, Ned grabbed his arm and asker, “Can you tell Peter to give me a call?”

 

“I'll tell him when I get back to the tower.” He opened up the backdoor and turned to Ned. “See you Monday, Ned!”

 

“Bye, Peter!” Ned waved as Happy pulled away. 

 

Happy looked at him through the rear view mirror. “How was school, kid?” 

 

“Good. Aced about all of my finals.” Tony avoided looking at him through the mirror. 

 

“About all? Why not all?” Happy asked, sounding suspicious. 

 

“Got a migraine in the middle of math. I'll have to ask my teacher if I can retake it.” Tony shrugged his shoulders, looking down at the F in his lap. 

 

“You feeling better now? I didn't know you got migraines. Does Tony know?” Happy had to turn his eyes away from Tony so he could keep them on the road as he drove. 

 

“I'm fine, Happy. I'll mention it to him later.” 

 

Happy scoffed. “That means never.” He sighed and said, “Peter, I really wish you would tell people about this stuff. We don't expect you to be invincible.” 

 

“I'll tell him, I promise.” 

 

“Fine. But if you don't, I will. And maybe I'll tell him about Flash too.” 

 

Tony remembered that Peter would panic. So, he quickly said, “No, Happy! Please. It's fine. I have everything under control.” 

 

“Uh huh,” Happy said as he continued to drive to the tower. “We’ll see.”

 

“Please don't worry about me. I'm fine.” 

 

Happy didn't answer right away, but when he did his voice was quiet. “I know you're fine, kid. You're stronger than a lot of people I know. But you're still just human, a human kid. You can't handle this on your own. I just don't want it to all explode on you.” 

 

“It's not going to explode,” Tony reassured him. It definitely wasn't. Not when Tony was around to help him.  Tony walked into the penthouse after Happy dropped him off at the tower. He looked around the room, but he couldn't find Peter. 

 

“Hey, FRI, where's Peter...or my body, technically,” he corrected when he remembered she could only scan for the body signature. 

 

“He's in the workshop. He just finished up patrolling and is putting your suit away.” 

 

Tony rolled his eyes. Of course, the kid would be day off from school to patrol as Iron Man. “Tell him to come into the living room.” 

 

“Yes, sir.”

 

Tony put the essay on the coffee table and took a seat on the couch. He was angry, but he didn't want to be angry at Peter. It was not the kid’s fault that he was bullied. But it was his fault that he hid it. But, that was besides the point. 

 

When Peter came bounding up the stairs, Tony cringed because his body was not supposed to move like that anymore. “Hey, Mr. Stark,” he said with a wide smile. 

 

“Hey, kid,” Tony said, trying not to let his anger slip into his voice. “I heard you were out patrolling?” 

 

Peter plopped onto the couch and cringed slightly, finally feeling the effect of old age. “Yeah. Stopped a few muggings, got an old lady her purse back, and even stopped a dog from getting hit by a car.”

 

“That's good. That's good,” Tony said, looking down at his lap. 

 

“Are you okay, Mr. Stark?” Peter asked. “What happened at school? You know if you didn't so hot on a final or two, it's okay, I--.” 

 

“I met your buddy Flash today.” Tony finally looked up at Peter and saw the blood drain from his face. “Really nice kid. Calling you names, shoving you into lockers...I mean, how awesome is that?” 

 

“Mr. Stark…” 

 

“And apparently this has been going on for a while!” Tony replied with fake cheer. 

 

Peter was staring down at his lap and shame was not a good look on Tony Stark. “I'm sorry you had to deal with him.”

 

“No, no, no,” Tony corrected him, “you are apologizing for the wrong thing. You should be saying sorry that you tried hiding it. Someone has been  _ hurting  _ you and you try to ignore it. I thought Spider-Man didn't let the bad guys get away?” 

 

“I’m not Spider-Man, okay?” 

 

Tony looked at him like he was crazy. 

 

“Well, I am, but not in school. I'm just Peter Parker,” Peter said. “And he's not even hurting me. He barely ever leaves a bruise.” 

 

“Just because he doesn't leave physical wounds doesn't mean he's not hurting you, Peter,” Tony said, his voice rising. “Because I was there today. I heard what he said to you and I think those words will hurt more than any punch ever could.” 

 

“What did he say to you?” Peter asked, sitting up straighter with wide eyes. 

 

“I'm gonna keep that to myself.”

 

Peter grabbed his arm and glared at him. “Mr. Stark, no, he said it to  _ me,  _ I deserve to know!” 

 

“Kid, no--.” 

 

“I've heard what he has to say before. You can't hide this from me!” Peter was yelling now. 

 

“I know, but I don't think you should have to hear it. His words don't matter.” 

 

“If his words don't matter then why won't you tell me?” Peter was getting red in the face and breathing heavily. 

 

“I will not repeat what he said.” Tony would rather him be mad at him than be upset by hearing what the kids at school were saying. 

 

Peter scoffed. “I can probably guess it anyway.” He slumped against the couch and crossed his arms over his chest. “And it's not like I won't hear it again on Monday.” 

 

“ _ Please  _ stand up for yourself, Peter,” Tony begged. “You don't deserve to be treated like this.”

 

“I'm fine.” Peter said and Tony was so sick of Peter saying that. “It’s whatever.” 

 

“It's not whatever.” Tony ran a hand through his hair. “You care so much about other people and you defend people like  _ me  _ until you're blue in the face, but you don't ever do it for yourself. Why?” 

 

“What?” Peter faltered. 

 

Tony leaned forward and picked up the essay. He handed it to Peter. Peter’s eyes widened as he read it over. “I spoke with your teacher…” 

 

“Mr. Kyatt?” He asked, sounding alarmed. 

 

“You failed this assignment just for me? I know you hear some choice words about Howard, but when you have to write an essay about him, you don't write about me! The stuff you put in there isn't even true. I'm not a hero, Peter.” 

 

“You're my hero, Mr. Stark.” Peter’s voice was softer. “That's my choice and I think I did a pretty good job of explaining my reasoning. Almost 20 pages. 12 point font, single spaced.” 

 

Tony looked at him and gave him a small smile. “And what's this about a Tony Stark blog?”

 

Peter blushed and stuttered, “Uh, it's nothing. Well, I mean it's just where I repost cool stuff about you and uh, argue with the antis.” 

 

“The antis?” 

 

“Yeah. Like people that don't like you,” Peter said, rubbing the back of his neck. “And people blaming you for everything. Even though, that's ridiculous.”

 

“So you tell off my bullies, but not your own?” Tony frowned. 

 

Sighing, Peter said, “There's a difference. When I'm Spider-Man, I'm behind the mask. When I'm on my blog, I'm behind the screen. For once, I don't have to be Peter Parker.” 

 

“There's nothing wrong with being Peter Parker,” Tony said softly. “He does a lot of amazing stuff.” 

 

Peter shrugged his shoulders like he didn't want to believe it.

 

“I'm gonna keep saying it, kid, until you believe me.” 

 

“That's gonna take a while.” 

 

“Then, it's a good thing I'm not going anywhere, huh?” 

 

Peter rolled his eyes, but gave him a small smile. Tony counted it as a win.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This turned out to be so much longer than expected. I really hope you enjoy this. Let me know your thoughts below.


	3. saturday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait, I'm not sure how i feel about this chapter. But it's a long one. Please enjoy.

It was Tony’s fault. Really. 

 

They had started their Saturday morning at noon (thanks to Pepper not being at the tower, Peter and Tony were able to sleep in) and Peter still needed his cup of coffee to start his day. They were sitting at the table, silent until the caffeine kicked in. 

 

Peter was getting the box of Lucky Charms from the counter and out instinct, Tony started to drink the coffee in the mug on the table. He finished it before Peter came back to the table and he debated asking the kid to get him a refill, but he didn't think he needed it. That was a first. 

 

Peter was the one that realized it. Which was a surprise because he looked half dead. He picked up the mug and lifted it to his lips. He frowned down at the mug and then back at Tony. “Did you drink my coffee?” 

 

Tony nodded. “Yeah, but you put too much sugar and cream in it. Was there even any coffee in there?” 

 

Peter pulled a face. “You drink it black and that's gross. If I'm going to be burdened with your caffeine addiction, then I'm going to enjoy it.” 

 

Tony shrugged his shoulders. Whatever. He turned back to his cereal and started eating it, spoonful after spoonful. He was feeling a little jittery and wondered if maybe 4 bowls of Lucky Charms was too much sugar.

 

“If you keep doing that, my leg will fall off.” 

 

“Huh?” Tony scrunched his face as he looked up at Peter. 

 

Peter looked pointedly at Tony’s leg where it was bouncing so rapidly it looked like it was vibrating. “I told you I'm not supposed to have caffeine.”

 

_ What? _ Then he realized. “ _ Shit _ .”

 

Laughing, Peter assured him, “Don't worry. It'll go away in an hour or two.”

 

“Great,” Tony replied sarcastically. 

 

“That's karma for telling Ned about this. He was freaking out on the phone for almost two hours last night.” Peter glared at him.

 

“Okay, 1) so not my fault: your guy in the chair figured it out all on his own, and 2) don't act like you weren't giggling right back on the phone.” Tony raised his eyebrows, slurping the milk loudly from his spoon. 

 

“Was not,” Peter grumbled with flushed cheeks. 

 

“Uh huh,” Tony said. “But, it wouldn't have even become an issue if you just  _ stood up for yourself.” _

 

“I already told you: it's all fine; I can handle it,” Peter argued.

 

“You get treated like shit at that school, but it ends now,” Tony said firmly. 

 

“What's that supposed to mean?” Peter asked, sitting up in alarm. 

 

Tony frowned in confusion. His words were pretty clear. “I'm tired of you being treated like shit and since you're not going to do something about it, I will.” 

 

“No, no, no. You can't do that!” Peter shook his head furiously. “I'll be fine. I don't want to make anything a big deal because that’ll make it worse. If I stay in the shadows, everyone leaves me alone.”

 

“That's why Flash always goes out of his way to harass you?” 

 

“He's different. I can handle him and he's graduating soon anyway.” Peter looked almost sad when he admitted, “I think he deals with a lot of stuff at home.”

 

Tony scoffed. “Excuse me if I don't give an actual fuck.  _ Everyone  _ is dealing with stuff at home. That is not an excuse to bully someone.” 

 

Peter looked down at his cereal, pushing the soggy pieces around the bowl. “I know, okay? I just...I don't want to talk about it.”

 

Tony sighed. He wanted to do anything but drop the conversation. Peter couldn't just keep ignoring it. “Fine. But Monday morning, I'm marching down to your school and giving everyone a piece of my mind. Don't expect to convince me not to.” 

 

Peter groaned, but didn't argue with him. He had to know that Tony was serious. And he was stubborn enough that when he put his mind to something, he was getting it done. Peter knew that. 

 

“Save it, Parker. I will not turn my head the other way like everyone in your school seems to love doing.” Tony thought back to when the principal himself had brushed it all off because Flash’s parents were very influential. Ha, just wait until Tony Stark stormed into his office. 

 

“This body switching is a lot less fun than I thought,” Peter mumbled, pushing his bowl of cereal away from him.

 

“Ah, come on,” Tony said, attempting to cheer him up. “You got to patrol in my suit. That's pretty cool.” 

 

Peter looked up at him with a small smile. “That was pretty cool.” 

 

“Exactly! And today is Saturday, so we don't have anything to do! If you wanna patrol some more, we can. If you want to lounge around the tower all day and watch movies, we can.” 

 

“What about that thing you have tonight? Your speech?” Peter frowned. 

 

Tony waved his hand. “I'll just tell them I'm not feeling so great. They'll understand. It's not like I'm the main speaker or anything.”

 

“FRIDAY,” Peter said without looking away from Tony. “Play Pepper’s message from this morning.”

 

_ “Hey, Tony, please don't forget about the benefit tonight. I've spent months putting it together and they've all been waiting on hearing you speak. Do not lose track of time in the lab with Peter, okay? Good. I'll be calling again later to make sure you're actually getting ready. Remember: Benefit at 5 sharp. Look nice, Tony, you're the main event. I hate that I even have to tell you this.”  _

 

“Oh,” Tony said, feeling the blood drain from his face. 

 

“ _ Oh,”  _ Peter mocked before crossing his arms over his chest. “Why can't I go to this? Afraid of someone else holding the reigns at such an important event?” 

 

“No, Peter, I trust you,” Tony said, despite Peter’s joking manner. “But--.” 

 

“But nothing! You went to school for me. It's only fair I repay the favor.” Peter was still smirking. 

 

“It's not the same thing. There's going to be senators, and professors, and scientists, and reporters, and other important people that even I don't know. I don't think it's a place for Peter Parker.” 

 

He didn't realize how bad it sounded until the words left his mouth. 

 

“Oh. Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry.” Peter stood up from his chair, pushing it back roughly. “I'm just gonna go, uh, yeah…” 

 

“Peter, stop!” Tony quickly stood up and started to chase after him. 

 

“I'm going to the bathroom,” Peter clipped. 

 

“I thought we weren't supposed to do that?” Tony joked, trying to get back the Peter that had been here all weekend. Joking and laughing. 

 

Peter didn't say anything; he stormed into the bathroom and slammed the door shut behind him. Tony faltered outside the door, wanting to knock. He wanted to order Peter to open the door and let him explain. 

 

But he didn't. He sat down on his butt outside the door waiting for Peter to come out. He knew he fucked up. Peter had every right to be angry at him. His hero had made him feel like he wasn't worth the company of the rich and famous. 

 

It was the exact opposite. 

 

Tony knew what kind of people went to these things. He knew the kind of person he had to be. That wasn't a place for Peter. Peter was honest and true and just a kid. He didn't need to be subjected to how fake Hollywood could be. How fake Tony could be. 

 

That was the old Tony Stark and sure, he'd changed his ways tremendously to an entire new person, but he still had to play a part for the higher society. 

 

And Peter was temporarily Tony Stark, which meant how had to put on the act. He didn't want Peter to have to go through that. He didn't want Peter to see that side of him. 

 

Peter would surely understand if he just  _ listened.  _

  
  


Finally, after what seemed like hours, Peter emerged from the bathroom. He hesitantly looked around, like he was scoping for Tony. Too bad he didn't look left and then down. 

 

Tony jumped up (thank God for Peter’s body) and grabbed his hand before he could leave. “Pete, stop.” 

 

Peter looked down at him with wide eyes. “Mr. Stark, I get it. You're you and I'm me. Of course, taking some finals isn't the same as making a speech in front of lots of important people.” He smiled like it was okay. But Tony knew it wasn't okay because that was the smile he used when he tried to play the same thing off. 

 

“Peter, would you just shut up and listen for one second?” Tony huffed and the kid snapped his mouth closed. “I didn't mean it like it came out. It isn't a place for you because you're so much better than all of them.”

 

Peter stared at him like he didn't believe him. 

 

Tony sighed. “Hasn't anyone ever told you that you shouldn't meet your heroes? 9 times outta 10 they let you down, kid…and maybe I didn't want to do that to you again.” 

 

“How would letting me go to this let me down?” 

 

“I'm not the person you think I am, kid. The way I act at those things...it's not something you should see,” Tony said softly. 

 

Peter was quiet for a moment before he said, “You're not the person they think you are.” 

 

“What?” Tony furrowed his brow. 

 

“You're acting like they know the real you and I've been hanging out with some imposter.” Peter gave him a small smile. “Hate to break it to you, Mr. Stark, but I'm in high school. I know what a fake person looks like. I can practically smell them. You're not like that.” 

 

Tony swallowed thickly. “You haven't been around the Tony Stark that the public sees.” 

 

Peter hesitated, deep in thought. “I've been looking up to you since before you were Iron Man. I know what kind of man you wanted the world to think you are. The one you still want them to see you as.”

 

“It's nothing to be proud of, kid,” Tony scoffed. “Heroes aren’t like me. They aren't selfish, they don't treat people like shit, they don't create robots that plan to destroy the world, they don't lie to their friends, they don't break up the only family they had, they don't fuck up. Peter, you shouldn't...I'm just one mistake after another. That's nothing to idolize. Heroes don't do that stuff.” 

 

“You're right. Heroes don't do that,” Peter said and Tony felt his gut clench. “Heroes let the woman they love run their company because they know she'll do a great job. Heroes spend days of no sleep working on prosthetics so their best friend can walk again. Heroes do their best to keep the team together when everyone is pulling in opposite directions. Heroes do their best and sometimes they make mistakes, but then they learn from them.”

 

Peter took a deep breath, continuing in a soft voice, “Heroes make million dollar suits for wannabe teenage superheroes running around in a onesie. Heroes look out for said wannabe superhero and helps him no matter how much danger he puts himself in. Heroes make him feel like he means something, like he's more than an orphaned little kid without a dad.” 

 

Tony was not good with this emotional shit. This was when he grunted and grumbled and hid in his workshop. But he wasn't Tony; he was Peter. And apparently, this is where Peter let the tears slip down his face. 

 

Rubbing at his eyes, trying to stop crying, Tony said, “Christ, kid, don't do that shit. I'm old and I have a heart condition.” 

 

Peter smiled. “Technically, I'm the one with the heart condition now.” 

 

“Doesn't matter. Too many emotions are still too much. Especially when you say things like that…” he shook his heading, staring at Peter. “Jesus, Peter, why do you...why do you put that much faith into me?” 

 

Peter’s smile turned softer and he said, “You know, a wise old man once told me: ‘There's nothing wrong with being Peter Parker. He does a lot of amazing stuff.’” He shrugged his shoulders. “Well, I think Tony Stark does some amazing stuff too and he's the best hero I could ever hope to be.” 

 

“Kid, don’t--.” 

 

“I'm gonna keep saying it, Mr. Stark, until you believe me.” 

 

Tony sighed, letting his shoulders sag in defeat. He knew there was no arguing with Peter. (He apparently did this in his free time on a Tony Stark blog that Tony vowed to find). “That's gonna take a while,” Tony quoted Peter from their conversation yesterday. 

 

Peter grinned back. “Then it's a good thing I'm not going anywhere, huh?” 

 

Tony rolled his eyes fondly with a smile of his own on his lips. “Get over here, kid.” He pulled Peter in by his shoulders and hugged him tight. 

 

The position was weird since Tony was usually the taller one holding Peter, but in Peter’s body, he was the one being cradled. Tony found himself relaxing in Peter’s arms. 

 

If Peter always felt this safe and secure in their hugs then maybe Tony wasn't doing to bad a job. Maybe this whole hero-mentoring thing would work out. Maybe. 

 

Hopefully. 

 

\----

 

In the end, Peter won. Of course. 

 

“You're lucky I had a suit measured for you,” Tony said as he pulled the suit jacket on. Peter was still in the closet getting one of Tony’s suits on. There were so many more options for him. 

 

“Quit whining,” Peter called back. “At least you know how to tie a tie.” 

 

Tony rolled his eyes. “Get out here and I'll show you.” 

 

He should have been scared when he heard Peter laughing. “Oh, I think I'm good, Mr. Stark.” Tony was looking down at his suit, trying to button the cufflinks when Peter walked out. He cleared his throat and said, “What do you think?” 

 

When Tony looked up, immediately said, “Oh, hell no.”

 

Peter frowned, looking down at his chosen outfit. “Why not? What's wrong? Is the black too boring? I was gonna wear your burgundy one, but I think it clashed with my sunglasses.” He pointed to the yellow lens Ray Bans on his face. 

 

The suit was fine: Peter had picked a simple black suit. But underneath the jacket, he wasn't wearing a button down shirt. Instead, he wore a red t-shirt that had the Spider-Man ensemble on it. 

 

“Peter, take that off.” His face was blushing red. 

 

“I didn't know you owned a Spider-Man t-shirt, Mr. Stark. Are you a fan? Because if you want, I think I can get you an autograph.” Peter grinned pulling open his jacket so the shirt was fully showing. 

 

“Stop being a brat,” Tony said. “I can easily make fun of you for all your Iron Man merch. Remember the boxers?” Tony grinned, thinking he had Peter beat because that day Peter had taken off his suit and completely forgot he was wearing his Iron Man boxers, he was mortified. 

 

But now, he simply shrugged his shoulders. “I'm a proud fanboy, Mr. Stark.  _ Everyone  _ knows that.” 

 

Tony glared at the kid as he pulled out his StarkPhone. He raised the phone up high and took a selfie. He was smiling brightly at the camera as he held up his hand in a peace sign. Then he started typing. 

 

“Hey, what are you doing, punk?” He asked, walking over to him, but Peter started walking away to stop Tony from getting too close. 

 

Peter pocketed the phone and then gave him his innocent grin. “Check Twitter. I've got you on post notifications.” 

 

And sure enough, a moment later, Peter’s phone in his pocket vibrated. Tony stared at Peter for a long moment before pulling out the phone. He clicked the notification and it opened Twitter. On his screen, he saw the same picture Peter had just taken. The caption read: “Spider-Man’s biggest fan”. 

 

Tony looked back up at Peter with a wry grin. “Haha, real cute, Underoos. Delete that.”

 

“What's a matter? You don't want people knowing you smile?” Peter teased. And yeah, it was a little jarring to see Tony Stark smiling so much. Even if it was just Peter. 

 

“Two can play at this game.” He scrolled through Peter’s apps and when he found a familiar looking blue one, he feigned ignorance. “Ooh, what's this? Tumblr?” 

 

Immediately, Peter’s laughing stopped. “Mr. Stark--.” 

 

“Starkaroos? Oh, that's adorable. Is this your blog that your guy in the chair told me about?” He started scrolling through his posts and laughed. His feed was a mess of arguing, pictures of Tony, memes, and just random text posts. “Hey, look this one has little heart eyes emojis under the picture. That  _ was _ a pretty good photoshoot.” He turned the phone around to show Peter. “Whaddya think, squirt? Do I get the heart eyes emoji approval from you?” 

 

Peter lunged for the phone and Tony jumped back. His face was bright red as he sputtered, “Tony!” 

 

“Oh,  _ now  _ it's Tony. Interesting.” He continued scrolling through the account and read bits of the posts where Peter was arguing with people hating on him. “Hmm, you've got quite the colorful vocabulary, Starkaroos. You kiss your auntie with that mouth?” 

 

“I don't-- Mr. Stark, please!” 

 

“I don't know, kid. You even called this one person an,” he paused to read from the screen, “assbutt. Very creative. I like this new, rebel you.” 

 

“Give it!” 

 

“Oh, just after I make a little post.”

 

“Don't!” 

 

In order to get away from Peter’s grabby hands, Tony climbed the wall he was pressed against. He didn't stop until he was high enough that Peter couldn't reach him. He looked down at the kid with a grin. “It's annoying when you can get me down, huh?” 

 

“Don't write anything embarrassing. Please!” Peter gave up chasing him when he realized there was no way he was reaching him. 

 

Tony used the hand not stuck to the wall to type his post as he read aloud, “My new Iron Man onesie pajamas just came in. They totally match my tighty-whities.” 

 

“Mr. Stark!” Peter shrieked and if he still had his voice, it would have definitely cracked. “They're not  _ tighty-whities.  _ They're  _ boxers _ . And it's not a onesie, it's feetie pajamas that May got me for Christmas.”

 

“Oh, my God, you actually have the onesie?” Tony asked, looking up from the phone with a growing smirk. 

 

“N-no! I was just  _ kidding _ ,” Peter stuttered out, looking humiliated. 

 

Tony stared at him silently for a moment before he said, “You're such a bad liar, kiddo. Maybe after the benefit, we can head back to Queens. I'll try it on and post it to all of your social media accounts.”

 

Peter immediately raised the phone in his hand up. “I still have your phone. I think I can find some embarrassing pictures on here to share with the world.” 

 

The kid was not wrong. “Okay, okay, Satin, let’s just both calm down.” He slowly started to make his way down the wall. “Let’s just trade phones back, okay? 

 

Of course, just as Peter was about to had Tony back his phone, it started ringing. Peter looked at the screen and said, “It's Ms. Potts.”

 

Tony nodded his head signalling Peter to answer it. 

 

Peter took questions deep breath, cleared his throat, and answered the phone, “Good afternoon, Pepper.” He quickly nodded like she could see him. “Okay, yes. I'm sorry. We're almost done. Yeah.” A pause. “No, we won't be late.” Another pause. “I know. Okay, love you, too. Bye.” 

 

Tony grinned at him when he hung up. “What were you yelled at for?” 

 

Peter looked sheepish as he extended his arm with the phone in his hand. They exchange phones and the kid muttered, “She saw the tweet. Told us to stop fooling around and acting like 3-year-olds.” 

 

“Well, you heard the boss, Webhead. Let's get ready.” Tony laughed. 

 

Peter jerked his thumb towards the closet. “I gotta put on a button down.” 

 

“Keep what you got on, kid.” Tony smiled. “It suits me.” 

 

The smile that lights on on Peter’s  (technically his but it's still  _ Peter  _ smiling) was worth any future consequences of not dressing properly for the function. 

 

\---

.

Before long, they were all ready and just waiting for Happy to pull up with the car.

 

Peter felt a little self conscious wearing the Spider-Man shirt, but he was Tony Stark. It was his signature style to wear t-shirts under the suit jacket. 

 

He looked over to where Tony was fixing his jacket, now being worn over one of his old Iron Man shirt. It looked worn out and faded, but Tony said it added that “vintage” look to it. He said they'd match with their t-shirts. 

 

“Do you need help gelling my hair?” Peter asked as he looked at the curls on his head. Especially for big events, Peter always gelled the curls down so they looked straight and less messy. 

 

“Nah,” Tony replied. “I like ‘em.” 

 

“Just...fix them a little.” Peter leaned over to make it look neater. It was  _ his  _ hair. 

 

Tony slapped Peter’s hand away and then ruffled his own hands through them, making them even more messy. “Nope.”

 

Peter rolled his eyes and grumbled, “You're so annoying.”

 

“Right back at you, kiddo,” Tony slapped him on the back. “Now, listen, we’ve gotta talk about this thing tonight since you’re going to be Tony Stark.”

 

“I get it, I get it. I’m not allowed to embarass you. Don’t worry. I won’t,” Peter promised and he hoped Tony believed him. Sure, when it was just the two of them he liked to tease his mentor (he still couldn’t believe he had a relationship with Tony Stark that allowed for teasing each other. Seriously, what the hell?), but he would never try to ruin his reputation at anything important.

 

“No, that’s not what this is about, kid,” Tony said, seriously. “I’m not the Tony you know, as I’ve said, so, you gotta act like you’re kissing ass to everyone in the room. In a cool way, of course. Don’t make it weird or obvious.”

 

Peter frowned. Tony was  _ Tony Stark.  _ His guests should be the ones kissing up to him. “What do you mean?”

 

“The people there tonight are wealthy contributors to many Stark Industry functions. Losing support wouldn’t be the end of the world, but it is not advised by Pepper.” He clapped his hands together. “So, just keep the sunglasses on, laugh at what everybody says, and channel your inner celebrity douche.” 

 

Peter swallowed. “Mr. Stark, I don’t think I can do this. I don’t know how to act. What if I mess up?” He didn’t want to continue to make Tony seem like an asshole. He wanted them all to see him for who he really was. 

 

“You’ll be fine, kiddo. I’ll be there the whole time to help you out. Don’t worry.” Tony gave him a reassuring smile that helped relax Peter’s nerves slightly. “And the speech you have to make is easy. You could do it in your sleep. There will be a teleprompter that you just have to read off of and you’ll be fine.”

 

“What is the speech about?” Peter asked, trying to stay calm even though public speaking had never been a strong suit for him. 

 

“Clean energy. The plans I’ve been working on. Do you remember reading them over? I can have FRIDAY get you the cliffnotes,” Tony offered. 

 

Shaking his head, Peter said, “No, thank you. I remember it all.” He had read it through when Tony had finished the last parts and Peter was the first one he called to tell. Peter read through it immediately and loved it. The information of the speech wasn’t what would give him a problem...it was the standing on stage in front of people thing. 

 

Tony smiled proudly and Peter smiled back. “Great. Just keep those glasses on and you’ll be fine. They’re special. Like a mask that hides you from the rest of the world.”

 

Peter wanted to argue; Tony shouldn’t need a “mask” to hide himself from the world. The world would love the Tony Stark he actually was and if they didn’t...then that was their problem and Tony didn’t need them in his life anyway. “If you say so, Mr. Stark.”  

 

“That I do, Underoos.” He nodded his head behind him. “Now, let's go. Happy is downstairs waiting.” 

 

Following him to the elevator, Peter took a deep breath and hoped that everything went okay tonight. He refused to let Tony down.

 

\--

 

As it turned out, benefits were a lot less fun than Peter imagined them to be. They were full of people looking nothing but pretentious. 

 

The minute they walked through the door, people were coming to him to shake his hand or say hi. He was immediately surrounded by at least a dozen people. 

 

He turned to find Tony. Tony always helped him out of situations like this. There was one time Peter got caught up with Tony by the paparazzi and they all swarmed the mysterious kid going out for lunch with the billionaire. Knowing it was too much for his senses, the yelling and camera flashing, Tony had grabbed his hand and pulled him to the safety of the car. 

 

Happy hadn't been happy (ha, get it?) and stormed over, shouting at the reporters to let them through and go home. Peter had been so grateful for the two making sure he got into the car safely. 

 

But, now, Peter was on his own. Except, he was Tony Stark. He could handle this. He took a deep breath and immediately started with what Tony liked to call, Spoon-Feeding Bullshit. 

 

He shook hands and smiled. The sunglasses were still perched on his face and Peter felt invincible. He greeted people, kissed cheeks, and did whatever it took to get all these guests off of his back. 

 

Tony trailed behind him, keeping out of everyone's attention for now. Which was fine. Peter didn't want Tony to suffer through what he had to, even though Tony was used to it. 

 

He couldn't explain the feeling, but he turned to look at Tony and all he saw was Peter Parker. Before Peter could think it himself, his brain supplied him with an unmistakable need to protect him. To protect Peter. 

 

Peter smiled, still looking at Tony. He knew Tony always looked out for him, but he didn't know the need was practically wired into his mind now. 

 

Tony noticed his staring and gave him an amused smile in return. Peter rolled his eyes and turned back to the slowly diminishing crowd of people surrounding him. 

There was a woman just in front of him, looking excited but also a bit nervous. “Good evening, Mr. Stark. Thank you so much for coming.”

 

Peter guessed she was the one in charge of putting this together. He smiled at her. “It's not a problem.” He wished he knew her name or something.

 

“I have your seat up front here, if you'd follow me.” Her eyes went over Peter’s shoulder presumably to where Tony was standing. 

 

“I brought a plus one, I hope you didn't mind.” Peter smiled. He knew she wouldn't.

 

“Of course, not, Mr. Stark!” She continued to walk them to their table. 

 

There was a small round table that fit a few seats. Peter pulled out a seat for Tony and then took his. Once the woman was gone, Tony turned to him and whispered, “Well, Mr. Stark, you're good at this, aren't you?” 

 

Peter rolled his eyes. “Shut up.” He wasn't about to disagree with Tony, but he wasn't going to admit it aloud. He wasn't always a blubbering idiot. Only when he was Peter Parker. But now, just like his blog and Spider-Man, he had something to hide behind. 

 

“Just keep this up and you'll do fine.” Tony winked. 

 

\--

 

Of course, Tony was right. Peter was great at being Tony. Mostly because it only involved greeting people before they walked to their tables. 

 

Peter was thankful that unlike everyone else, they got a small table with only room for them to sit at. He didn't want to have to keep up the act the entire night. 

 

“You would have sat by yourself,” Peter said after their company had taken their seat. 

 

“S’fine,” Tony said. “Better than sitting with any of this fake bitches.” Peter frowned. He didn't like hearing himself cuss like that, but Tony did. He chuckled and said when he noticed Peter still looking concerned, “Don't worry about it, Pete. I hardly ever sit down at these things anyway. And usually I have Pep to bring with me.” 

 

“When we're back to normal...do you think you'll invite me?” Peter asked, unsure if that was a question he should be asking. 

 

Tony rolled his eyes. “How about you finish this one and let me know if you still want to come. I think you'll say no.” 

 

Peter shrugged his shoulders. “Parties are cool. I don't go to them often--.” He stopped short realizing how much of a loser he sounded like. “Not that I don't get invited, but it's just not my scene, y’know?” 

 

Tony raised his eyebrows, obviously seeing right through his bullshit. Of course, he didn't believe him. He went to school as Peter Parker. Tony knew how everyone only acknowledged him to make him the butt of their jokes. 

 

“I don't like you knowing my secrets,” Peter grumbled. 

 

With a roll of his eyes, Tony ignored his comment and said, “Kiddo, if you want a real party, just wait till I throw one at the tower.” 

 

Peter had heard the stories of the parties, usually hosted after a big win for the Avengers. But, after they split apart, the parties became non-existent, a myth to Peter. 

 

“Can I invite Ned?” Peter asked, knowing his best friend would kill to be at a Stark party. 

 

“Of course, you can invite Ned, kid.” 

 

Peter smiled. “Thanks, Mr.--.” 

 

“Mr. Stark, you have the stage in 5 minutes,” the woman interrupted them, thankfully, before Peter could finish his sentence. He had to remind himself that unless he wanted someone to catch them, he couldn't call Tony anything but Peter. 

 

She was gone just as quickly as she came, leaving Peter feeling more nervous than ever. “Is it too late to call in sick?” Peter asked feebly. 

 

Tony answered him seriously, leaning over to hold his wrist. “Say the word, kiddo, and we're out of here.” 

 

Peter shook his head stubbornly. “No, I'll be fine. I'm Tony Stark.” 

 

Laughing, Tony said, “I don't know about that, but of course, you’ll be fine. You're  _ you,  _ kid.” 

 

Peter felt better being Tony Stark, but he knew they were both stubborn enough to never shut up if they're started this argument. So, he said, “There's gonna be teleprompters, right? And I don't have to do anything but give a speech?”

 

“Exactly. And if it gets to be too much, just look over at me. I'll be right here.” Tony grabbed his hand to squeeze it softly. 

 

Peter let out the deep breath he was holding. “Thanks, Mr. Stark.” 

 

A hand was suddenly on his shoulder. “Mr. Stark, they're waiting for you.” 

 

Peter turned away from Tony. Oh, right. “Sorry, I'm ready.” He let the woman led him to the stage and he followed her up the steps.

 

Backstage, he was met with several different people. One started straightening his jacket, another fixed his hair, another handed him a microphone. All while the woman continued to speak, “Just go out there and tell them all your ideas, Mr. Stark. They've already invested and I think we've got them all.”

 

Right. Peter was selling up Tony’s clean energy plan to big businesses and other wealthy parties interested. He couldn't mess this up. 

 

So, he took the stage. The room was dark in front of him as the light shined on him. He saw the screen on the back wall, giving him exactly what he was supposed to say. But there were so many people watching. Everyone's attention was on him. 

 

He swallowed and opened his mouth to introduce himself but no words came out. 

 

He could hear faint murmuring. He was embarrassing Tony up here; he should have stayed home. Searching for the one familiar face in the crowd, he found Tony staring up at him. There wasn't a disappointed look on his face like expected. Instead, he was smiling softly and gave Peter a thumb-up. 

 

Peter smiled back, feeling some of the tension leave his shoulders. He took a calming breath and said,  “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, I'm Tony Stark…” 

 

\--

 

He left the stage and was immediately patted on the back and congratulated about his great speech. And Peter could tell they weren't just kissing ass; they actually thought Peter did a great job. 

 

“Thank you,” he responded politely to everyone. He just wanted to get back to his and Tony’s table. 

 

He hurried down, trying to keep the skip from his step. There were too many watching eyes. He reached the table and Tony stood up with and big grin. He clapped Peter on the shoulder. “I told you you could do it, kiddo.” 

 

“That wasn't that bad,” Peter said, still feeling sorry leftover jitters from being on the stage. “It was actually really cool once I relaxed.” 

 

“You're a natural.”

 

“No, Tony Stark is a natural.” 

 

“Talking in third person, I see?” A new voice said and of course, everyone decided to interrupt them when they weren't being careful of their names. 

 

Tony and Peter both turned to look at the newcomer. He was an older man with glasses, looking at the two with amusement. He held out his hand. “Winston Grant, CEO of Grant Motors.” 

 

Peter recognized the name as an expensive car company.  “Good evening, Mr. Grant.”

 

“Your idea was quite spectacular. I just have a few questions before I give you a yes, if that's okay.” 

 

Peter felt his heartbeat a little faster. They hadn't prepared for this. Tony would be the best to answer the questions. Peter only read through his research and plan. “Of course,” he said anyway. 

 

“The energy, how can we be sure that it's clean and not any resource damaging to our earth?” 

 

Oster thought hard back to Tony’s research. “It runs a power source very similar to what I once had in my chest,” he said. “It mostly derives from my new element.”

 

“The one you created?”

 

“Yes. Bad-Assium,” Peter said, still finding Tony’s name for it amusing. 

 

“And can this be put inside cars as well?” Winston Grant asked. “I think that idea had a future behind it.” 

 

Peter thought about it; he didn't want to just give an answer the man wanted. The energy was strong, but was it too strong to be in such a small space like the hood of a car? “With some more researching and tinkering I think we can figure something out.” 

 

“Good, good. Then I think you have me on board, Mr. Stark.” He gave him a smile before walking away to go speak to other people around him, hopefully, telling them all to give Tony’s idea a try. 

 

When they were alone again, Tony said, “Did your homework, huh?” 

 

Peter felt his cheeks flush slightly but didn't argue. 

 

Not long after, others came up to their table to ask more questions. They weren't all easy, but Peter answered them all with no more than a moment of hesitation. 

 

“You know what this means, kiddo?” Tony said after the fourth person left their table, pleased at Peter’s answer. “It's time to mingle around and convince the others to join.”

 

Unsurprisingly, the moment they were walking around, the first question they were asked was: “Who's the kid, Stark?” 

 

This was one questions Peter wasn't prepared for. There was no facts here. What did Tony want them to know? Thankfully, Tony took this one for himself. He held out his hand and smiled. “Peter Parker, sir. I'm his intern.” 

 

The man didn't look convinced. “You always bring your interns to these things?” 

 

“He's training directly under me,” Peter said quickly. 

 

The man raised his eyebrows and Tony laughed at the inappropriate innuendo Peter really hadn't meant to make. Peter pinched him and he shut up. 

 

“Special projects. And stuff.” 

 

“Uh huh,” the man said before walking away. 

 

Peter sighed in relief as Tony started laughing again. “Good save there, kiddo,” he said sarcastically. 

 

“Shut up, Mr. Stark,” he said with no real heat behind his words. 

 

“Come on, bigshot, I think you deserve a little break.” Tony dragged him by the arm over to a small table of snacks next to an open bar. 

 

Peter’s eyes widened at all the fancy foods. “Uhh, I'm guessing there's no table for chicken nuggets and French fries.”

 

Tony rolled his eyes. “Just eat. It's good.” He picked up something that didn't look very good and popped it in his mouth. 

 

Peter scrunched his nose. “What are you putting in my body?” 

 

“Nothing. I thought you said we couldn't do that stuff in each other's bodies.” Peter slapped him as he laughed. “Okay, stop, it's shrimp.” 

 

“Ew fish.” Peter stuck his tongue out. 

 

“Aren't you Italian?” Tony asked, going for another. 

 

“Yeah, so?” Peter searched the table for anything appealing.

 

“You never had fish on any holiday?” 

 

Peter found something that didn't took  _ too  _ bad. He ate it and took a few seconds to decide whether he liked it. It tasted okay, but the texture was kinda gross. “Nah. Ben didn't like it and I was allergic so May never made any.”

 

Tony’s eyes widened briefly before he leaned forward to spit out his chewed shrimp into a napkin. He looked back up and whispered, “Parker, you let me eat fish when you're allergic?”

 

Peter laughed and it took a few tries for him to get it out, “I'm not allergic anymore, Mr. Stark. After the bite my allergies disappeared.” 

 

Tony wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Glaring, he said, “You could have mentioned that before giving me a heart attack.” 

 

Laughing some more, Peter said, “I'm fine. I'm not allergic to it anymore.” He started listing off his fingers, “Fish, peanuts, cats, and olives.” 

 

“Wow,” Tony said. “Are you glad to have that gone?” 

 

“Yeah,” Peter replied. “I like that I don't sneeze and itch my eyes when I pet Murphy.” 

 

“Murphy?” 

 

“Mr. Delmar’s cat.” 

 

“Okaaay,” Tony said, giving the kid a weird look. 

 

Peter grinned at him, taking a bite of the food he still didn't know what was exactly. “What is this?” He said, mouth full of food. He held it out for Tony to try. 

 

Tony rolled his eyes and took the last half in his mouth. The minute he started chewing, he gagged. “What the fuck are you eating?” 

 

“Pretty good, right?” Peter smiled, even though up knew Tony did not think it was good. 

 

“Get your taste buds looked at please.” Tony pulled a face. “I need water to get  _ that  _ taste from my mouth.” 

 

Peter laughed as he grabbed another one. So, it was a little weird tasting...it was weird in a good way. He turned around to the bar and said, “I'm sure they've got water.” 

 

The bartender smiled when they came over. “Good evening, Mr. Stark, what can I get you?” 

 

Out of habit, Peter looked towards Tony to wait for him to say his drink. But Tony was staring right back at him with raised eyebrows,  _ Peter’s  _ raised eyebrows. That's right. 

 

“ _ I'm  _ Tony Stark,” he whispered. 

 

Tony rolled his eyes. “Just order, idiot.”

 

Peter fumbled as he turned back to the bartender.  _ He could order a drink. A real drink.  _ “I'll have an, um…”  _ Shit _ , he didn't know what drink to even order. He tried to think back to any movie or show he'd watched where someone was ordering a drink. “A, uh, whiskey...on the rocks!” He added the last part quickly with a smile he hoped seemed normal. 

 

The bartender gave him a weird look before nodding his head. “Of course, Mr. Stark.” He turned to Tony. “How about you, son?” 

 

Before Tony could say anything, Peter smirked. “He’ll take an apple juice.”

 

The bartender gave him an amused grin. “Is that on the rocks too?” 

 

“Why not?” Peter said, not really sure what on the rocks even meant. 

 

The bartender got to work while Peter and Tony waited for their drinks. Peter turned to Tony. “How does it feel to be 15 and under the legal drinking age?” 

 

Tony rolled his eyes. “You're lucky I'm letting you even drink. If I don't think you were going to completely hate the taste maybe I would have stopped you.” 

 

“I'm not going to hate the taste,” he argued. He didn't want Tony thinking he was a stupid kid that couldn't handle alcohol even in an adult body. 

 

“Mhmm,” Tony hummed in disbelief. “We’ll see about that.” 

 

Their drinks were out a few minutes later. Apparently, “on the rocks” meant with ice because they both had a glass filled with their drinks and ice. Peter laughed when he watched Tony take a sip of his apple juice and make a face. 

 

Tony set down his glass and glared at him. “Just wait until you try yours, kiddie.” 

 

Peter was fine. He could handle  _ one  _ drink in Tony’s body. He smiled at him before taking a large sip...that he regretted immediately. It  _ burned  _ his throat. And it didn’t even taste all that good. He fought back his gag though. “Mmm delicious.” He took another sip to try and make it sound convincing.

 

Tony just watched as Peter took a third sip. It grew harder and harder to hide his disenjoyment of this drink. A fourth. A fifth. By the sixth, his face was puckered and he wanted to spit it all out. Maybe ask Tony for that apple juice. 

 

Just before he could take another sip, Tony said, “Oh, God, stop. Just order something else.” 

 

“I’m fine, Mr. Stark. I can handle...alcohol…” He hoped he sounded more believable than he felt. 

 

Rolling his eyes, Tony took the drink from his hand and put it on the counter. “Get a daiquiri. You’ll like it.” 

 

Peter knew that look in Tony’s eye, even if they weren’t technically his. He wasn’t lying. This wasn’t a joke. So, he nodded. “Okay.” 

 

He ordered a strawberry daiquiri from the bartender and he looked at him weirdly. “Feeling a little girly tonight, huh, Stark?” His tone wasn’t meant to be mocking, but it didn’t sound friendly either. 

 

“Hey,” Tony snapped, causing Peter to look at him in surprise. He never heard his nice like that. “Last time I checked drinks had no gender. If he wants to enjoy something fruity, then let him.” 

 

The bartender turned away and started making the drink. He served it out and Peter hesitated as he picked it up. Glancing around the party, he said, “I don’t have to y’know? I can finish the other one.”

 

Tony rolled his eyes. “I don’t care what these fuddy-duddies think about me drinking a ‘girly’ drink, Parker. Just tell me if you like it.” 

 

Peter took a sip, careful and slow, afraid of what this one was going to taste like. He didn’t let the fruity smell trick him. The drink touched his lips and then his tongue and… “Holy crap, this is good.”

 

Tony laughed, sipping his apple juice. “I thought you’d like that.” 

 

Taking another sip, Peter smiled. “This is  _ delicious _ .”

 

“When you’re back to normal, I’ll make you a virgin daiquiri, okay?” Tony watched him drink some more in amusement. 

 

Peter nodded, unable to verbally answer as he swallowed some more of the delicious drink. Wow, now he understood why people liked to drink. This stuff was  _ good.  _

 

“Okay, pace yourself, buddy,” Tony said with a small laugh as he pulled the drink from his hand and put it on the counter. 

 

Peter would have argued with him to get it back, but then a hand on his shoulder stopped him. “Hey, Tony, heard you had the famous Peter Parker with you and I needed to meet the kid, finally.” 

 

_ Famous Peter Parker?  _ Peter could laugh. He was kinda glad that the attention was on Tony (who the adult thought was Peter) because Peter had no idea who he was. The man introduced himself to Tony, though, “nice to meet you, son. I’m Richard Greene. I work in the Admissions Office at MIT.”

 

Because he was Tony, he effortlessly shook his hand with a smile. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Greene. Peter Parker.” 

 

“Oh, I know. Tony has told me quite a lot about you.” He lowered his hand, still smiling at Tony.

 

Peter was in shock. Tony talked about Peter to an admissions officer at  _ MIT?  _ Tony glanced at him and he knew that he saw the shock on his face. “Oh,” Tony said in mock surprise like he didn’t already know, “he does?”

 

“He sure does, kid. Sometimes we can’t shut him up.” The man laughed as he clapped Tony on the shoulder. “And when MIT hears  _ the _ Tony Stark bragging about a kid, we know we have to get our hands on him before he slips away.” 

 

He still couldn’t believe his ears. Tony seriously bragged about him,  _ Peter Parker _ , to Tony’s college, to the college of Peter’s dreams? 

 

“So, what do you say, Mr. Parker, can I steal you away for a few minutes to get to know you?” 

 

Peter was still in shock because  _ what the heck?  _ A college wanted him and he was only a sophomore. He was a nobody. He was Peter Parker. There was no reason for MIT to come looking for him. Except there was because Tony Stark was talking about him. Tony Stark was  _ bragging  _ about him. 

 

Tony turned to look at him, mastering his innocent boy with bright eyed smile. “Can I go Mr. Stark?”

 

Peter realized that Tony was asking him if he could speak to the man on his behalf. He nodded his head and realized he should probably say something as well. “Yeah, sure, sure. Go ahead. I’ll be, uh, right here.” 

 

The man wrapped an arm around Tony’s shoulder and started leading him away. Before they left, Tony looked over his shoulder and winked. 

 

Then he was gone and Peter wasn't really sure what to do with himself. He didn't feel right drinking without Tony near, so he pushed his glass to the bartender and went to go back to the table of small foods. 

 

Unfortunately, he was stopped before he could reach it. A taller man grabbed his arm with a smile. He leaned in real close and whispered, “Finally, been waiting for that kid to leave so I could talk to you.”

 

Peter’s heart rate spiked. This was a conversation he wasn't to be having for Tony. “Uh…”

 

“Shh, just be quiet and listen,” the man snapped. “You may have everyone else fooled but not me. I know you're up to something. You're trying to be Mr. Do Good with all this good energy shit. Buttering up the press with that kid. I know you're up to something. Don't even try to hide it.” 

 

Peter frowned at the audacity of this man. How dare he accuse Tony Stark of using a kid for his own gain? Who did this man this he was? “I'm sorry, and you are?” 

 

He hadn't meant it as an insult; he wanted to know so he could remember the name. Maybe after all of this was over, him and Ned could have some fun hacking into servers and websites of wealthy businessmen that spoke to Tony like that. But, the man grew angry at Peter’s comment. He leaned in close,  grabbing Peter’s arm and squeezing it tightly. “You're not funny, Stark. Stay away from my business. Stick with what you know: killing people and avoiding any responsibility.”

 

Peter growled, leaning in just as close. “You better watch your mouth. I think someone's just jealous I'm more successful than him.” 

 

“You don't scare me. The world is going to find out you're a fraud sooner or later. I'll be laughing when they do.”  

 

Peter shoved the hand off his arm.  _ He was Tony Stark _ . Nobody treated him like this. “There's nothing for them to find out. My work is honest and clean. Unlike you.” 

 

The man didn’t dignify him with a response besides for a growl. Peter gave him a wide smile before he stormed off. The moment he left, Peter relaxed and he smile slipped from his face. “That was a close one,” he said with shaky sigh. 

 

“Mr. Stark!” Someone called like they knew Peter was free now. He groaned. “Mr. Stark, can I get a picture!”

 

Peter didn’t like the attention, but Tony needed to go through it, so he bucked up and nodded his head. He posed for several pictures and he hoped Tony returned before any started asking any questions. 

 

Unfortunately, for him, he thought too soon. “So, the kid, who is he?”

 

“Uh,” Peter sputtered unsure of what to say. He looked around the room.  _ Where was Tony?  _

 

“Do you even have to ask that?” Another woman reporter asked with a scoff. She turned back to Peter and said, “So, who’s the mother?”

 

Peter reeled back slightly. “W-what?”

 

“The kid. We knows he’s yours. The looks, the brains, the everything,” she said like it clarified it all. “So, why have you kept him hidden for so long?”

 

“He's not my son,” Peter insisted, trying to remain calm and steady. If he freaked out, then people would think he was lying. 

 

The crowd of reporters laughed around him. 

 

He tried again, “Seriously, he's just my intern. That's it.”

 

At least one reporter believed him, or at least humored him. “What about in 2005, when you said you would never have any interns: ‘come see me when they're smart enough to keep up with Tony Stark.’ Are you saying that kid is a genius?”

 

Peter felt his face blush. Tony thought he could keep up with him? He wasn't really an intern, but he was always allowed to help Tony in the lab. “Uh, yeah, he's pretty smart.”

 

“Usually intellect is a hereditary trait,” another one said and now they were back to thinking he was Tony’s kid. Which, Peter wasn't going to lie, always made him stomach flutter. That would be awesome. But he had a dad. He had a father that loved him already. 

 

“His father was a famous scientist. So was his mother,” Peter said softly, willing his voice to stay steady while talking about his parents. “They were both killed in an accident. As amazing as it would be to be related to him, that's not the case.” 

 

The reporters went quiet after Peter spoke. They were human enough to know when to be obnoxious. And they knew after finding out a teenager lost both his parents was definitely not a good time. 

 

“So, I'm not his real father, but I'm the last adult-male role model he's got and I'm gonna do my damned best to help raise him right,” Peter finished, ready to get back to the table of food or Tony. 

 

“How do you think you're doing so far, Mr. Stark? Do you think you'd be a good father to this kid?” A reporter asked before Peter could slip away. 

 

Peter felt his lips curl into a small smile as he responded clearly, “The best.” 

 

Before anyone could say anything else, Peter walked away to their table. He sat down and let out a heavy breath. Hopefully, no one else would come up to speak to him. 

 

Thankfully, they didn't. Peter was left alone with his thoughts (and Tony’s phone) until Tony came back. He had fun messing around on Twitter for a few minutes. 

 

He felt a hand on his shoulder and he turned around to see Tony smiling down at him. “So, what'd I miss?” 

 

Peter laughed and shrugged his shoulders. “Nothing much.” 

 

Tony sat down and gave him a weird look. “You're such a liar.” He looked down to the phone in Peter’s hand. “You're not posting my nudes, right?” 

 

Rolling his eyes, Peter said, “That would require  _ me  _ looking at them too. I'm too young to be  _ that  _ scarred.” 

 

“Haha, very funny. Just wait til we get back to the tower... or maybe I should go back to good old Richard and tell him how much Peter Parker hates MIT.” Tony nodded his head behind him. 

 

“No!” Peter startled. Tony laughed and Peter blushed; of course, he was kidding. “So, how'd that go?” 

 

“Magnificent. You're welcome by the way. I'll tell you all about it at home.” 

 

“Sounds good.” Peter smiled at the word ‘home’. Tony smiled back. 

 

So, Tony wasn't his father or Uncle Ben. But he came pretty damn close. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will probably be another quick wrap up chapter. I haven't decided if I have enough to pull together a fic.
> 
> BIG THANKS TO WEREALLJUSTWINGINIT ON TUMBLR FOR THE URL IDEA. I ACTUALLY MADE IT SO ENJOY STARKAROOS.TUMBLR.COM


	4. monday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the long wait and all you get is this shit. It's almost 5 am and I think I got all the errors but i can't even see straight anymore tbh 
> 
> Please enjoy!

Peter ducked out of his last class, hoping to avoid everyone. Today had already been a  _ really  _ weird day. He thought maybe it was because he was finally back to his own body after Doctor Strange had reversed the switch last night, but then he began to realize it was because he hadn't needed to ignore his spidey sense at all throughout the day. No stuck feet to avoid tripping over, no embraces as he was shoved against a locker, no need to hide in the nearest bathroom after runnin _.  _ There wasn’t even any teasing or name-calling. 

 

He hadn't seen Flash at all. Not even in his usual classes they shared. 

 

Which was either really good because he was  _ finally  _ leaving him alone. Or it was really bad because he was pissed and he was getting ready for something huge to ft back at him with. Hopefully, it was the former. 

 

“Dude,” Ned said, catching up to him, “I think Mr. Stark killed Flash.” 

 

Peter could feel dozens of students’ eyes on them, but for once, Ned was actually whispering so he hoped they didn't hear. “He didn't  _ kill  _ him.” 

 

Ned shook his head. “Flash was a complete ass to you when Mr. Stark was you...so I wouldn't put it past him.” 

 

“How bad was it?” Peter's grip tightened on his books. It was one thing for Tony to know about the bullying, but it was another for him to  _ experience it firsthand _ . And he still refused to tell Peter what Flash had said. 

Peter wasn't sure if it was worse to know exactly what to be embarrassed about or to be left in the dark all and just as humiliated. 

 

Wincing apologetically, Ned said, “Pretty bad, dude.” 

 

Peter groaned. “And you can't tell me?” 

 

“You think I'm going against Tony Stark’s direct orders? No way.” Ned shook his head. 

 

“But you're my best friend. You can't hide things from me.” Peter tried pulling out his puppy dog pout, but Ned wasn't affected by it. 

 

“Pete, I stopped falling for that in the eighth grade. Nice try.” Ned patted his shoulder. “But, I  _ am  _ your best friend. That's why I knew when it wasn't you I was with.” 

 

Peter thought about how they were able to fool everyone but Ned. “That  _ was _ pretty awesome.” 

 

“I can't believe I pinned  _ Tony Stark  _ against a wall!” Ned said, his voice growing louder. “I just knew that wasn't you and acted!” 

 

Peter shushed him but still laughed. “I am honored at the lengths you would go for me, Ned,” he said it like he was joking, but Peter meant every word, “but let's not brag about it in public.” 

 

“No one ever listens to us. We're practically invisible.” Ned rolled his eyes, but there was no real heat behind it. 

 

“Not since--.” 

 

The crackling of the PA system interrupted Peter before he could finish. A very familiar voice filled the hallway. “H-hello. This is Mr. Kyatt with a message for Peter Parker.” 

 

“Oh, shit,” Peter mumbled under his breath. If people were staring at him before, they were definitely staring now. 

 

“Dude,” Ned gasped, quickly pulling out his phone and pointing it at the speaker on the wall. Peter wasn't sure why he'd want to record this. He was probably about about to get yelled at in front of the entire school. 

 

“I owe you an apology, Mr. Parker,” his teacher said, though he didn't sound happy at all about it. “Your final grade was corrected to your deserving A+.” 

 

“Dude, dude,  _ dude _ ,” Ned breathed, shaking Peter's arm while he continued to record. 

 

“I've treated you poorly in my class with no reason. You are a very bright boy...and I apologize for any and all times I ever targeted you unfairly.” 

 

It sounded scripted and almost like Mr. Kyatt was afraid of something. But Peter was just happy to finally be getting this guy off his back while he got knocked down a peg.

 

“This is  _ gold _ . You should have told Mr. Stark about him sooner.” Ned was smiling widely. 

 

“So, Peter Parker, I apologize to you. You are so much smarter than I will ever be. And Tony Stark is freaking awesome.” 

 

The PA went silent after that and the hallway erupted in hushed whispers as the attention focused back on Peter and Ned. People were pointing and staring and Peter just wanted to leave.  _ Now _ . 

 

He felt his heart begin to beat anxiously. “I've gotta go--.” He managed to say before Ned was grabbing his arm and dragging him to the exit. 

 

“We're leaving. Don't worry, Pete,” Ned reassured him. Peter grabbed his wrist as they hurried to the exit. There was no real danger, but here Ned was, saving him again. 

 

“I'm sorry--.” 

 

“You don't need to apologize. They shouldn't be assholes.” Ned pulled him close and away from anyone staring. Between the news articles and stories being looped on televisions and now the announcement, Peter was the focus of everyone's attention. 

 

They made it outside without anyone stopping them, thankfully. But once their feet hit the concrete steps, they collided into someone else. 

 

Peter's spidey sense never went off so it wasn't a danger-- probably a mistake. He was already apologizing, “Sorry, sir--,” but he stopped when he looked up and saw just why his spidey senses didn't warn him off danger. Because there was none. It was Happy. Peter let out a breath of relief. 

 

Happy immediately took in his panicked state and put a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, kid. You okay?” He leaned down slightly to get down to his eye level. 

 

Peter was about to assure him he was fine, but Ned was quicker. “Anxiety. You know...he's the center of attention in there “ 

 

“Ned!” Peter narrowed his eyes at his friend. He didn't want Happy to know he was upset because he was too anxious to be a normal person in social situations. 

 

“Dude, they're all over you! I'd be on edge too.” Ned was still holding onto his wrist. Peter was thankful for that. The hand on his shoulder and the hand on his wrist were the only things keeping him grounded. 

 

“That's why I'm up here, kid. Got sleazy paparazzi waiting for you and I don't need them jumping you before you can reach the car.

 

Peter looked over Happy’s shoulder and noticed a crowd of people by the car that picked him up from school everyday. He groaned. 

 

“I know. You can thank my boss for this. Insinuating you're his kid the other night was ridiculous. Pepper's trying to put out fires and figure out how to protect you, since you're a minor, from all of this shit.” 

 

Peter chuckled and he felt Ned’s eyes on him. They both knew  _ he _ was the one to make those comments. He didn't think  _ this  _ would happen. He just wanted people to stop treating Tony like crap. 

 

“Well, we better get going. Said boss is waiting for us back at the tower.” Happy turned to Ned. “Need a ride, bud?” 

 

Shaking his head, Ned answered, “Nah. My mom will be here soon.” He squeezed Peter's wrist once before letting go. “See you tomorrow, Pete.” 

 

“Bye, Ned,” Peter said weekly before Happy steered him towards the car. He winced at the flashing cameras that were blinding his vision, thanks to his enhanced senses.

 

“You okay, Pete?” Happy asked as he opened the back door for him. His normally sunglasses-covered eyes were full of poorly hidden worry as they raked over his body.

 

“I'm fine,” Peter assured him, “I just want to get out of here.” 

 

“You got it, Little Boss,” Happy said and was quick to jump into the front seat and speed away. A few cars trailed behind them, but Happy worked hard on losing most of them. 

 

Peter sat in the back with his backpack pulled against his chest, wondering if this was going to be his life from now on. 

 

Happy continued to mumble under his breath about dirty pigs like them not being human beings, even when it came to kids. He was doing a great job at dodging them all.  No that Peter was surprised;  he was Tony Stark’s bodyguard for years-- he could dodge the worst paparazzi. 

 

Peter wasn't really Happy’s responsibility. All he had to do was pick him up and drop him off. There was no need to form any relationship or talk to him about his day or drag him from dumpsters and clean him off after...but he did. He was the big brother Peter never had. No matter how annoying Happy claimed him to be, he knew Happy cared about him just as much as Tony did. 

 

After a sharp turn that lost the last car tailing them, Happy pumped a fist in the air. “Suck it, TMZ. Hogan's still got it.” 

 

Peter leaned over, between the driver and passenger seat. “Thanks, Happy.” 

 

Happy briefly turned his head to look at him with a soft smile. “No problem, kiddo. You know I'd be happy to drive some of these assholes off the road for you” 

 

Peter smiled, leaning back. To others, that may have sounded like Happy was brushing his thanks off, but Peter knew what exactly it meant. He knew just how far Happy would go to keep him safe and he didn't need to switch bodies to figure that out. 

 

\--

 

“Oh, good, you've returned in one piece,” Tony said as Happy and Peter walked into the living room of the tower. 

 

Happy rolled his eyes, but there was no heat behind it. Peter heard the television and walked over to watch the story. 

 

“Should we be surprised? We all know Tony Stark’s past. He had to have gotten one of the women pregnant.” On screen is a picture of Peter and Tony at the event from Saturday. Honestly, looking at them side by side make it hard to positively say they weren't father and son. They shared so many physical traits and even small quirks that even Peter was debating the possibility of being Tony's kid. Only for a moment. 

 

“I gotta say, boss, this is definitely one of my favorite stories made up about you,” Happy said, taking a seat next to him. “Though, it's better when it's you, the adult, running from the paparazzi. Not a kid.” 

 

Tony glanced at him briefly and Peter knew what he was thinking. This was  _ Peter's  _ fault. He was the one that had Tony Stark calling an unknown child,  _ his child.  _ He'd told him he didn't care and didn't blame him. They would figure it out. But Peter still felt like crap for starting all of this. 

 

“Maybe I'll start a rumor about you next.” 

 

“Been there, done that.” 

 

Tony laughed, slapping Happy on the shoulder. “That was all you, buddy. You're the only body guard that grabs their boss in a big bear hug every time you think there's danger.” 

 

Happy’s cheeks flushed pink. “It's not a hug-- I was trying to get between you and any danger.” 

 

Peter smiled, remembering the story years ago. Tons of news outlets were trying to figure out if Happy was a bodyguard or just an extremely overprotective boyfriend. Even Colonel Rhodes was dragged into the debate. And of course, when asked, Tony said they were in a very happy polygamous relationship with a lot of oragies and role play. (At the time, Peter hadn't known what any of it meant and Uncle Ben refused to explain it). 

 

“I don't know, Happy,” Peter said, deciding to get in on the teasing, “You've never given me a hug like that while  _ protecting me _ .” 

 

“That's because Peter Parker has never had the people after him like Tony Stark has...but now that Peter Parker is apparently his son, all of Tony Stark’s enemies are now his.” Happy pulled at his jacket and straightened his already straight tie. He was nervous. Anxious. 

 

Peter wasn't helpless. He could protect himself. He was Spider-Man. There was no reason for Happy to be worried. He plopped down on the cushion next to Happy and draped an arm over his shoulder. “Don't worry, Haps, I took a self defense course in gym. Scream, aim for the nuts and neck. I would do the whole ‘sticking my fingers in my attacker’s eyes’ to blind them, but I'm squeamish.” 

 

Tony laughed from the other side of Happy and Peter grinned. 

 

“I'm glad you two think this is funny. But let's see who's laughing when I've gotta chase nosey photographers from the kid’s bedroom window.” 

 

“I live on the seventh floor.” 

 

“I was trying to make a too stressful situation,” Happy said quickly. “If you really need me, kid, I won't be protecting your from paparazzi.” 

 

Peter quieted as images flashed in his head: attacks and stalking and kidnappings...all because he was seen with Tony Stark.

 

Tony cleared his throat, probably sensing Peter's rising anxiety. “Well, at least now you won't be  _ Iron Man’s bodyguard.”  _

 

Happy rolled his eyes. “No. This time it's Spider-Man.” 

 

Peter patted his knee encouragingly. “Nobody else knows that! And really, you're protecting Peter Parker. I can't use my spidey powers without outing myself. So a Happy Hogan may come in hand.” 

 

“Kid’s got a point. You get to have fun on the job and have all your dignity back. You're protecting a kid! Ladies love men good with kids.” Tony winked, nudging his shoulder. 

 

Happy blinked slowly as he stared at Tony before he turned his gaze to the ceiling. “Why do I still work for him? Why do I do this to myself?” 

 

“Because working for him means hanging out with  _ me.  _ And you wouldn't give that up,” Peter replied, cheekily. 

 

Glancing at him, Happy said, “You become more like Tony a little bit every day.”

 

“Thank you!” 

 

“Who said it was a compliment?” Happy huffed, but Peter knew he was teasing him. 

 

“You said I was like Tony Stark,” Peter deadpanned, “how is that not a compliment?” 

 

Tony was surely about to comment on that, but he was interrupted by the clicking of heels against the floor. All three of them knew what that meant.  

 

Before Pepper even entered the living room, Tony stood up and was ready to meet her in the doorway. He opened his arms up with a smile, hoping to calm her down, probably. “Pepper, I missed you, honey.”

 

“You want to explain to me why I've been putting out fires since Saturday night?” She asked, stopping just a few inches in front of him, arms crossed over her chest. But her hard gaze was on Peter. 

 

“Uhh…” Peter gulped, wondering what he did to get on her bad side. Tony would never get into trouble with Pepper while in his body.

 

“Woah, Pep, what's wrong? Did the squirt spill apple juice in the fridge again?” Tony stepped between them. 

 

Peter wanted to argue because  _ he _ didn't spill it the first time. Tony had gotten drunk one night and insisted on tucking Peter into bed but not without pouring him a large glass of apple juice. He had let the bottle fall to its side and spill on everything in the fridge. Pepper had been annoyed that the fridge was a sticky mess and Peter had been upset at the waste of apple juice. 

 

Pepper then did a slow double take; she looked from Peter to Tony. Tilting her head, taking a step closer to Tony she asked, “Tony, is that you?” 

 

Peter's eyes widen. There's only one reason she would be asking if that were Tony. 

 

“Of course, Pep. Who else--.” 

 

“Don't start this bullshit. I know something weird was up. And I know now it's back to normal-- whatever it was.” Her eyes flicked over to Peter. 

 

“What? You knew?” Peter asked, his brow furrowing. How could she ever guess this? “How could you know?”

 

Pepper rolled her eyes. “You two were super obvious. You may have switched bodies, but you still act the same. I know my fiance...and my fiance’s  _ son _ apparently.” 

 

“When did you realize?” Tony asked, sounding just as shocked as Peter felt. 

 

“The moment I walked in and saw Peter web you to the ground and you almost say ‘Mr. Stark’.” She raised an eyebrow. 

 

“Oh, shit.” Tony rubbed his neck. 

 

“Wait,” Peter said suddenly, “you knew I wasn't Mr. Stark?”

 

She nodded her head, a smiling growing. 

 

“And you made me hide in the bathroom for a half hour!” Peter said, his voice cracking and he winced. 

 

Pepper laughed. “I wasn't going to do anything. I never get to see Tony flustered. It was adorable.” 

 

“Hey--.” 

 

“Am I the only one  _ completely  _ lost?” Happy cut in, looking entirely lost from his spot next to Peter. 

 

“The kid and I Freaky Friday-ed. Keep up.” 

 

Happy turned and looked at Peter with wide eyes. “So, you're saying when I drove you to school the other day…”

 

“That was me,” Tony said, a smile on his face.

 

His face turned a little paler. “But, I said stuff--.” 

 

“Oh, yes, you reminded me.” He turned around to face Happy. “You encourage the kid to hide stuff from me?” 

 

“What-- no, the kid had an asshole bothering him and I didn't want to push him to do something he didn't want to. I had it covered,” Happy said, quickly-- like he was afraid of Tony knowing he helped Peter hide something from him. 

 

“Hey, I'm joking. I know you did. I want to thank you for keeping an eye on him.” He said sincerely as he patted Happy’s shoulder. 

 

Peter felt his face heat up. “You guys don't have to protect me-- I'm 15. I'm Spider-Man.” 

 

“Maybe,” Happy said, “but you have almost as much self-preservation skills as Tony.” 

 

“Hey,” they both replied at the same time. Tony met his eyes and smiled. 

 

“I'm glad we're all justifying Tony's helicopter parenting, but can we focus on a bigger problem? Like the fact that the entire world now thinks Peter is Tony's son.” Pepper tapped her foot.

 

“Good. Now we can blame the one actually responsible for this,” Tony said, looking at Peter. But he was joking-- Peter knew he'd take full blame himself if anyone really blamed Peter for this. 

 

“What about the fact that I think you killed a kid from my school?” Peter replied. 

 

Pepper’s eyes widened and Happy grinned. “Finally get rid of that kid? Thank God, I was about to hit him with my car.” 

 

“ _ You have,”  _ Peter said. 

 

“Nope. I gently tapped his legs. Doesn't count.” 

 

Peter rolled his eyes. 

 

“And besides: he was a bully. Who will really miss him?” 

 

“Oh, not me,” Happy said. 

 

Peter looked from Happy to Tony frantically. “ _ Was?”  _

 

“He didn't kill anyone,” Pepper said. 

 

Sagging against the couch in relief, Peter let out a loud breath. “Phew--.” 

 

“All I did was pay him a little visit yesterday. Let him know that his future colleges would appreciate hearing from Tony Stark. I also stopped by your school. Lovely place,” Tony said sarcastically enough that Peter could taste it. “Told them I didn't give a shit about who was on the board: that is no excuse to turn a head to bullying-- even worse-- blame my kid for it. Nuh-uh. He was pretty fucking embarrassed by that. And he switched that dickface’s schedule so he's always on the opposite side of the school, but if he still bothers you, tell me and I will end him. And what about your teacher-- he apologized right?” 

 

“Yes. In front of the entire school.” 

 

Tony grinned. “Perfect.” 

 

Peter knew Tony always would have done anything for him, but to see it in action...it was something else entirely. It was nice to see someone care enough to actually do all of that  _ for him _ . “You didn't have to.” 

 

“No,” Tony agreed as he leaned over and ruffled Peter's curls, “but I wanted to.” 

 

Peter smiled softly, but then it slowly disappeared. “I'm sorry.” 

 

“What for, kiddo?” Tony asked.

 

“For acting like you were my...dad and telling those reporters. I just caused a big mess. Probably embarrassed you too.” 

 

In a quick moment, Tony was on his knees, kneeling in front of Peter. He moved his hand from his hair to lift his chin. “Hey, look at me, Pete.” Peter looked up, trying hard to fight back tears that he didn't even know why were burning his eyes. “I'm not embarrassed by you. Hell, I'm pretty damn proud.” 

 

“So proud I get thrown into dumpsters, huh?” He grumbled. 

 

“Even more proud, actually,” he said. “You go through that shit daily and you haven't snapped? Kid, I was about to kill him after a few hours. I'm proud of how you're able to be strong enough to let it go.” 

 

Peter didn't let it go. He wished he could just let Flash’s words roll of his skin. “I just go home and cry about it,” he said bitterly. 

 

“Nothing wrong with a few tears,” Tony said. “I cried all the time when I was younger. Was bullied too.” 

 

Peter's head shot up sharply. “What?” 

 

“You think being fifteen in college was  _ fun _ ? Kid, I used to get a facial from the toilet every week.” He scrunched his face. “Hell, I'm  _ still _ getting bullied.” 

 

Peter wasn't sure if he was lying about being bullied as a kid, but for some reason, it felt better knowing Tony went through it too. Maybe he would understand and feel less embarrassed by him. 

 

“That's why I care about this, kid. Because the people bullying me now-- they don't care that you're a kid. They will hurt you because of me no matter what. In fact, it worries me even more that they'll target you  _ because _ you are a kid.”

 

“I'm still Spider-Man.”

 

“You're always gonna be my little buddy. I don't care how strong you are. I'm gonna protect you from every bad guy, bully, and paper cut.” A calloused thumb wiped away a tear from his cheek and Peter's eyes fluttered shut. 

 

“Must get annoying having to protect me so much…” Peter said quietly. 

 

“Not at all,” Tony replied without hesitation. “Honesty, this is probably payback from all the shit I put Rhodey through.” 

 

Peter huffed a laugh, opening his eyes to see Tony's face, full of nothing but adoration and...love. 

 

“I'm kidding. Seriously, kiddo, I worry-- like a lot...so, if you let me be just a bit overbearing, I would appreciate it.”

 

“Just a bit?” Happy scoffed. 

 

“Shut up, Forehead of Security. You're lame,” Tony rolled his eyes and Peter laughed. Tony smiled softly, his shoulders relaxing. “There it is: the Parker Giggle.” 

 

“I don't  _ giggle _ .” 

 

“Sure do, squirt.”

 

Peter groaned, knowing he couldn't argue it. Even if he didn't, Tony wasn't going to let it go. “You're annoying.”

 

“Oh, I know.” 

 

“You know what's more annoying? Trying to hide a child from thirsty reporters that want nothing more than to exploit his entire life story.” Pepper was annoyed, but it wasn't directed at them. 

 

Peter thought about  _ his life  _ being broadcasted on every news channel and his stomach rolled. His past wasn't a secret; anyone that really wanted to could do some research and find out about his parents who never came home or his uncle who died in his arms. He didn't want that brought up and talked about on the latest episode of TMZ. 

 

“Hey, bud, c’mon, you're okay.  _ No one _ is going put your life on any websites or television shows or magazines. Pepper is going to find  _ every single loophole  _ since you're a child and they won't dare to come near you.” Tony's voice was steady and strong, anchoring him through the rough waves of anxiety crashing around him. 

 

“I'm sorry,” was all Peter seemed capable of saying as he tried to settle his breathing. 

 

“No apologizing when there's no need. We're gonna fix this. Pepper gets paid to deal with my trouble-- this is nothing.” Tony moved his hand off his face to cup the back of his head and scratch his scalp softly. 

 

Pepper took a step closer and her voice was much softer than only seconds ago. “It's okay, Peter, I'm going to figure this out for you,” she promised before she was hurrying off, pulling Happy along with her. 

 

“Oh, do I get to scare off more paparazzi?” Happy asked eagerly. 

 

“Please,” Pepper said as the sound of her clacking heels grew distant. 

 

Tony didn't speak again until they were gone. “You okay, kiddo?” 

 

Peter nodded his head when he could breathe without his chest feeling so tight. “Y-yeah, sorry.” 

 

Tony narrowed his eyes. “I'm going to take ‘I'm sorry’ out of your vocabulary.” He brushed a wayward curl off his forehead, his face softening. “This? This I can handle. You just...gotta tell me, Pete. I'm not a mind reader. So, when you're suffering, I'm begging you-- please just come to me. I can try to make it a little easier on you.” 

 

“I'm okay--.” 

 

“You're not. I was literally  _ in your shoes.  _ I know what you're hiding from me now. Everything.” 

 

Peter fidgeted, not liking that his mentor knew everything from his point of view. “Flash is an--.” 

 

“This isn't even about the bullying. Well-- it's included. But just-- even the headaches? Kid, if something about your spider bite is harming you, you need to come to me so I can help you.” He held him just a bit tighter. “I don't care how little or how big. I want to help you.” 

 

“Well, you know you don't tell  _ me  _ everything. Like the fact that apparently you come into my room when I'm sleeping me and coddle me like a baby.”

 

“Oh? You mean when you're having a nightmare  _ because _ you keep it all bottled up?” Tony raised one eyebrow. 

 

_ Shit. He was right.  _

 

Tony noticed his hesitation and grinned. “But yes, I do come coddle you. I crawl up next to you and thread my fingers through your hair. That's your favorite you know-- when I play with your curls.” 

 

Peter  _ knew  _ he was doing this to tease him and get him riled up. 

 

“It's adorable-- your little button nose scrunches up when I work through some of your knots. I swear, one time I heard you purr.” He started to play with Peter's hair and his first reaction was to lean towards the hold. Tony grinned. 

 

“Stop it. You're cheating.”

 

“And after I've calmed you down, you're just a sleepy mess. Like a puppy that spent his day chasing his tail.”

 

“Ohmygod, please stop,” Peter groaned, but he didn't move from his hold. 

 

“There is no one else here, so there's no need to act like you don't enjoy it. I know for a fact you do. You even beg me to stay sometimes.” 

 

“I hate you,” Peter replied, rolling his eyes. That sentence was the farthest thing from the truth. Tony knee it too. 

 

“No, you don't,” he answered and before Peter knew what was doing, Tony pulled him a bit closer and quickly pressed his lips to his forehead. He froze and Peter's eyes widen as Tony pulled away. 

 

Peter could already see it all closing back up-- Tony was building up his walls again. Peter couldn't let that happen..he grabbed Tony's wrist so he wouldn't be able to leave. “There's something else I hid from you.” 

 

Tony looked uncomfortable as he lowered his hand from Peter's hair. He missed the comfort already. “Hmm?” He refused to meet Peter's eyes. 

 

“I defend you so much in class more than just because you're Tony Stark and you've been my hero forever.” He hesitated before continuing, “When someone says something bad about you-- especially when it's not true-- I just get really annoyed. How dare someone try to belittle you like that? You're...you're family. No one disrespects my family.” 

 

Tony looked back up at him. “Family?” 

 

“Yeah. You know, like...a dad...figure thing…” 

 

“A dad figure thing?” Tony repeated, his lips quirking. 

 

“I can take it back, you know,” Peter said, a blush on his cheeks. 

 

“Do you know what that means,  _ son _ ,” the nickname was supposed to be a joke, but it felt like so much more to Peter and probably Tony too. 

 

“What does that mean,  _ dad?” _ Peter responded with the same amount of wit. 

 

“It means you have to tell me everything. Every bully, nightmare, and anxiety.” He smiled softly, his tone turning serious. “That's our job. To hush your cries from every nightmare, to bury every bully six feet under, and fight every anxiety until it never comes back out again.” 

 

Peter thought about how his life was nightmare after bully after anxiety. “Sounds like a lot of work.” 

 

Tony shook his head. “Nah, it's nothing when you love someone. It's actually a lot of fun.” 

 

_ When you love someone.  _ Tony just admitted he loved Peter. “Are you sure?” 

 

“‘Course. I'd love if you'd let me. But you've got to tell me these things from now on, okay? No more secrets.” 

 

Peter nodded. He didn't want to hide it anymore anyway. It was so much easier to tell Tony and have someone  _ understand.  _ “Okay. I'll tell you from now on.” 

 

Tony raised his eyebrows. “You promise, kid?” 

 

“Promise. When I'm struggling, I'll come to you.”

 

“I'm holding you to that. There's no reason to go through it alone. Not when you've got an entire team behind you.” 

 

_ Entire team.  _ There was a time when his team consisted of only Ben, May, and Ned...and then only May and Ned. Now, he's got May, Ned, Tony, Happy, Pepper, and even Rhodey. No matter where he turned, there was someone waiting to take his hand and hold him above the waves. No one was going to let him drown. 

 

All he had to do was start opening up to them. Ignore what anxiety whispered into his ear and  _ tell them.  _

 

He wasn't alone. 

Especially when he had Tony Stark as his dad figure thing. 

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave your thoughts below! I hope you enjoy:) This is a lot of fun to write and I encourage all readers to check out the peter and tony challenges tumblr so you can write your own fics based off the prompts it's a lot of fun. especially this month.


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